I know firsthand how hard it is to find solid ground when pain and suffering blast into your world and turn it upside down. How overwhelming it feels when adversity shatters your view on life. How frustrating it is to lose perspective just when you need clear vision and insight the most.

To me, the journey through pain and suffering feels a bit like waking up in a foreign country where you don’t speak the language. All of a sudden you’r... (continued)

The scene atop Mount Carmel must have been spectacular. The people of Israel and their evil king, Ahab, had gathered to witness the showdown between Elijah and the 450 prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18:16-40). God didn’t disappoint them.To settle the dispute about whose god was truly God, the God of Elijah showed up in a heavenly fireball! The people’s response was no less dramatic.The false prophets were killed and the people re... (continued)

When Elijah hit bottom, he responded the way many of us do. In his battle-weary, beaten-down state, he lost sight of the big picture. Discouragement clouded his vision. He focused only on the negative and totally dismissed the positive. His immediate circumstances loomed so big that he lost sight of God’s faithful character and sovereign power. The result? He ran as far and as fast as he could, then he simply gave up.... (continued)

Just as Elijah’s perspective prevented him from seeing things as they really were, our perspective can blind us to reality too. People who suffer often express similar beliefs that colored their perception of life and hindered their ability to cope with it. These common false beliefs include:

When he was a teenager, Henry Cloud dreamed of becoming a professional golfer, and he was well on his way to fulfilling that dream. A successful amateur, he was recruited to play NCAA golf in college. But the dream began to fade when he developed severe tendon trouble in his left arm. Doctors couldn’t figure out the cause or how to treat it. Henry’s game suffered, and after two years of hampered play, he quit. The dream was ... (continued)

Janette and Bill needed a fresh start, so the chance to move out of state for a new job opportunity looked like a divine gift. But life after the move was complicated. Bill’s new job didn’t turn out to be what he was promised. Janette was still feeling the pain of wounding words from her previous employer, which made it difficult to handle the stress of her new job. Their children were feeling lonely and insecure as they adj... (continued)

When her marriage of twenty years crumbled, Grace desperately needed perspective. Her marriage had been wonderful. She and her husband had counseled other couples in crisis. They had opened their home to the homeless, sick and hurting. And Grace gave God credit for all the good things she enjoyed in her marriage. “Having experienced two failed marriages previously, I thought God had brought me to a place of marital blessing ... (continued)