Professional Bowler Shannon O’Keefe; Overcoming Spiritual Adversity

Professional Bowler Shannon O’Keefe; Overcoming Spiritual Adversity is the topic that will be discussed today on RIOT Podcast, a Christian Discipleship Podcast. Oswald Chambers once said, “Spiritual maturity is going from being thin-skinned and hard-hearted to thick-skinned and tendered-hearted.” Oswald is basically saying we either are getting angry quickly and becoming bitter or were letting things go and becoming loving. Ephesians 4:32 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. The question we want to tackle today is: How do we become tender-hearted? In the words of the song in Frozen we “let it go, let it go!!”. We are able to become tender-hearted when we learn to surrender our will and let it go to allow God’s will to take over during times of Adversity. True success is never achieved without overcoming adversity, whether it is physically, mentally, or spiritually. If we achieve success with only our physical and mental beings and not our spiritual ones, then we can never become tender-hearted. It’s only by achieving success spiritually that we can become tender-hearted and achieve the greatest success of all. The bi-product of our spiritual success is that we can now overcome our physical and mental adversity with joy. When adversity comes, we are forced to face problems and pressures that are too big for us to resolve. It’s often in this manner that God gets our attention. Adversity reminds us that God is present and we are accountable to Him for our every thought, word, and action. God’s Word reveals that the fear of the Lord is the key to life, wisdom, and lasting achievement. The pain of adversity helps us recognize the deception of sin. Our hatred of evil will increase when we realize how sin keeps us from living in a way that honors God and how it damages the lives of those we love. Learning to let go and let God in our greatest battles of life allows us to become content and thrive in our moments.