Bible Study: Coping with Crisis

This week's Bible study focuses on dealing with difficult situations (links for the passages are in Tuesdays announcement).

The first story comes from Genesis where future patriarch Joseph finds himself in a rather difficult situation. His employer's wife lusts after him and tries to seduce him causing Joseph to have to struggle with his moral center. Joe has had quite a turnaround in his fortune up to that point, though he is essentially a slave life is better than it might have been for the young man. One wonders if Joe asked himself how God could have put him in this situation and as you take a look at this you may wish to reflect on times when you too have wondered why God "let this happen." though this story focuses on sexual temptation, it is a good time to consider how you are tempted in your own life. What pressures cause you to perhaps compromise your own personal moral center or convictions? How do you resist temptation? How can you sense that God is with you even during these times of your life?

With this in mind we turn to the first chapter of 2 Corinthians where Paul is once again writing words of comfort to people who are troubled. It might be worth taking a moment to think about what expression of caring you found most comforting when you were a child. How did that feel or look like? Where can you receive that same sense of healing and comfort now in your life? Are there pressures in your life right now that are causing you despair? How do you respond to those pressures? Do you find they deepen your sense of God's presence or tend to drive you away from faith? Why do you think that happens? How can you pray for people who are stuggling through times of despair or who are dealing with extra pressures in their life?

Well, those are plenty of questions for reflection and thought.

Join us next week on Wednesday night when we talk about pressures related to our health.