Succeeding in Difficult Situations

Hello Everyone, my name is Byron Howell and this is the Byron Howell Ministries Podcast.  Thank you very much for joining me today and I know we are going to have an awesome discussion and this is going to bless you.

Let me start by saying that I know I haven’t posted in a while.  I hope you have all been well.  We have been well at our house.  I’ve been really trying to focus on God and His plan for my life.  I want to make sure that I’m doing what He wants me to do.  So I’ve been spending more time in personal Bible study and prayer, and I know that as I seek His will, He will reveal it to me by His Holy Spirit.  And I know that is true for all of you as well. 

This morning as I sat down to read the Bible I started thinking about this concept of succeeding in difficult situations and I felt like I should do this teaching and maybe it’s just for one person out there.  But if so that’s ok and it’s all worth it.

In case you don’t know me I’m almost 43 years old, I have a wife and two daughters.  I am a real estate lawyer.  I have a house with a mortgage.  And I generally have a traditional family man, suburban type existence.  But in my life I have been through a number of battles, some of them significant.  I can also say that I’m seeing victory in every area of my life, and I can see God’s blessings in every area of my life.

Now let me just assure you that I’m not trying to boast.  Without God I would literally be dead.  I could tell you a number about stories of God’s protection when I was doing stupid things earlier in life, and I know that God has protected me all of these years. 

And I can also say that without God, even if I was still alive, every area of my life would be a total mess.  If I’m succeeding in my life, if I’m seeing victory in my life, it’s only because I live by the Word of God and I try to do things according to God’s directions in every area of my life. 

It was 20 years ago this coming May that I fully dedicated my life to God.  And I know that I should be farther along than I am.  I know that I should be doing better than I am.  But I can also say that I have seen God’s involvement in every area of my life, and I have seen God’s directions and systems produce positive results in every area of my life.

Sometimes we look at our lives and we see a whole bunch of difficult situations.  And any of us, if we wanted to look at our lives with a very critical eye, could probably do that.  Marriage can be hard.  Work can be hard.  Parenting can be hard.  Virtually every area of our lives can be hard by itself, but how you are doing in each area largely depends on the choices you’ve made combined with your environment and circumstances.

But you can succeed in every area of your life.  My friends, you can succeed in every area of your life.  I don’t care how bad it looks.  I don’t care how hard it feels.  You can begin winning in every situation, and today I’m going to show you how to do it.

Now it’s not going to happen overnight.  There will be some patience.  There will be some effort.  But if you do what I’m telling you to do in this podcast, you can begin succeeding in every situation of your life because of God’s help and involvement.

The first thing you need to do, for every situation, is get saved through faith in Jesus Christ.  I’m not going to spend a long time on this.  But if you’re not saved, if you are not a child of God through faith in Jesus Christ, then just get saved right now.  To truly succeed in life it is absolutely essential that you get born again as one of God’s children and that you fully come into God’s grace and blessings, and that only happens when you become a Christian.  So if you don’t know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you are a Christian, that if you died right now you would go to heaven, then repeat this prayer out loud right now.

Father God, 
Thank You for sending Your Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross.  Thank you that He paid the price for my sins.  I believe that You raised Him up on the third day.  I believe Jesus now reigns with you in Heaven.  I confess and declare that Jesus is the Lord of my life.  I repent of my sins.  Please fill and baptize me with Your Holy Spirit.  Please lead me into Your plan for my life.  In Jesus’ Name I pray, amen.

My friends, if you prayed that prayer, or if you are already born again, then according to Galatians 3:26 you are now a child of God, according to 2 Corinthians 5:21 you are righteous with God’s own righteousness, according to 2 Corinthians 1:20 all of God’s promises belong to you, according to Colossians 1:13 you are delivered from the power of darkness and brought into the Kingdom of God, and according to Ephesians 1:3 you are blessed with every blessing God has to give.

Now I could go on and on, but I hope you agree those five verses are pretty powerful, and they are the absolute foundation for your ability to succeed in every area of your life, and in any difficult situation.

Look, there are a lot of reasons we have difficulties in life.  The devil is out there and he hates everyone.  He is trying to destroy the world with hate and sickness and poverty and war and he would kill all of us if he could.  But his power and influence is limited, thank God. 

Some of our difficulties are just because of this fallen world.  There are sicknesses and diseases and germs out there.  Our bodies, while amazing, are relatively fragile and we can get hurt or sick.  We are also fragile emotionally and we go through life and we get hurt and sad or depressed and those negative emotions want to hold us back.  And I realize most people wouldn’t know this, but I would say negative emotions are personally my number 1 problem.  And there are all sorts of other difficulties and things that cause us problems.

But you are God’s child now.  You are righteous in the eyes of God now.  You are no longer under the devil’s power.  You have all of God’s blessings, and you have all of God’s promises.  The days of your struggle and your toil without success should be over.  And if you do things God’s way, they will be over.

Now the first thing you need to understand, if you want to deal with a problematic situation, is that you need to give it some time and focus.  I know that probably sounds obvious, but how many of us have just allowed a difficult situation to continue because it’s easier to let it go than it is to truly attack it head on.  I know that I’ve done that, sometimes for years, but no more.  But if you won’t give your situation any time or effort, maybe it will get better on its own, but it probably won’t.  So if you want to deal with it, you have to give it some time.

Once you’ve decided to give it some time, the first thing you need to do is pray about it.

Philippians 4:6-7 NLT - Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

My friends, this verse has absolutely become an essential part of my life.  I can tell you that it’s working for me and it will work for you.  We must stop worrying.  You need to develop a mental reflex that anytime you start worrying you immediately start praying.  To put it another way, worry should trigger prayer.  Just do it.  If you start worrying, start praying.

As an example, I use this at work all the time.  As a real estate lawyer, I work on relatively sophisticated commercial real estate transactions.  Basically, I work for a couple of large private funds.  And on all our transactions, we have checklists.  I have a checklist, the lenders have checklists, and the other parties involved have checklists.  And, generally speaking, if anything on the checklist isn’t done, the deal won’t close.  My job, fundamentally, is to get everyone’s checklist done. 

As I’m sure you can imagine, that can be stress-inducing.  And many times I start worrying about problematic checklist items.  That’s when I need to pray.  I talk to God about what I need.  I ask for His help.  If I sense that there is any spiritual situation (and yes, that does happen), I will pray about that as well.  I ask for favor with the other people involved.  I ask for help with difficult people.  And I pray as I feel the Holy Spirit leads me to pray.

And the most amazing thing happens, just as the Philippians verse promises.  I start to experience God’s peace.  The worry leaves, and the peace enters.  I feel better about it.  I know God is helping me.  Often, God gives me ideas or directions about how to handle something.  Often, He calms me down and corrects my attitude. 

I can tell you beyond any doubt that this is how you should start dealing with any difficult situation.  It may sound simple, but it’s powerful, and you don’t want to skip it.  Just start praying.  Trust God and listen for what He may say or reveal to you, or how He leads your heart with directions.

Now the next thing you want to do is go to God’s Word.  I don’t care if you just got saved a few minutes ago or if you have been saved for 50 years.  If you have a difficult situation, and you are ready to give it time and attack it, then you need to go to God’s Word.

I guarantee you, going to the Word of God regarding your situation is going to bless you.  Maybe you’ve read every relevant verse 100 times, it’s still going to bless you.  You’re probably going to see something you’ve never seen before.  You’re probably going to understand a verse in a way you never have before.  Very possibly, the Holy Spirit will reveal something to you directly while you are reading the Word.  Something good is going to happen, but you need to open your Bible.

Psalms 119:130 KJV  - The entrance of thy words give light; it gives understanding unto the simple.

John 1:1 tells us that God and His Word are One.  When you are in the presence of the Bible you are in the presence of God, but that’s only true in any type of practical sense when your Bible is open and you are reading it.  The Word of God, for your difficult situation, is going to primarily do three things.  First, it’s going to show you God’s will for your situation, at least generally.  Second, it’s going to show you how you should be acting in your situation.  Third, it’s going to show you what God’s promises are for your situation.

Maybe you have a problem with your children.  Go to the Word of God and read the verses about parents and children.  Just use Google or some other search engine or Bible search software.  I use E-Sword and it’s free and amazing.  Search for the verses and read them. 

Now if you don’t want to do what the Bible says, that’s up to you and good luck.  But if you continue to act contrary to God’s principles, you cannot expect God’s promises to work in your life.  That’s like eating McDonald’s every day while praying to lose weight.  God has all sorts of promises in the Bible for your health, but deliberately taking actions to hurt your situation will absolutely hinder the flow of God’s power for your situation.

Let’s understand this concept briefly because it’s really important.  When you start developing your faith in God’s Word and living in line with God’s Word, supernatural power flows out of the spiritual realm to begin changing your situation in the natural realm.  Now I know that is a huge and very loaded statement, but for today you are just going to have to trust me.  Let me say it again.  When you start developing your faith in God’s Word and living in line with God’s Word, supernatural power flows out of the spiritual realm to begin changing your situation in the natural realm. 

You must understand that God’s power is flowing from the spiritual realm into the natural realm to change physical reality.  My friends, that’s how it works.  And, in the vast majority of circumstances, it does not happen immediately.  Your negative situation didn’t develop in an instant, and it’s not going to be fixed in an instant.  Mark 4 in the Parable of the Sower basically explains this concept, but most people don’t live by this.  Just as a seed needs time to become a tree, the Word of God takes time to produce God’s will for your life, and we need to be patient.

As you have prayed and as you are studying and believing God’s Word, that power is flowing.  But you can absolutely engage in negative actions that hinder the power.  I know some people might not believe that, but it’s still true.  Right now, for example, God’s power is flowing into my children’s hearts to improve our relationships.  We have a good relationship, but I want better.  I know God’s power is flowing because I have faith in God’s Word and His promises for these relationships.

However, if I am mean to my children or if I don’t engage with them or do other negative things in those relationships, then the negative effects on their hearts and minds is going to work against the power of God.  My negative actions in the natural realm will oppose what Gods’ power is doing, and positive change will be hindered if not stopped completely.  Remember, we want change in the natural realm, in our daily lives.  God’s power is working over time to produce that change.  But if I’m making things worse in the natural realm, I won’t see the answer to my prayers.

And this is why, while you are praying and while you are studying God’s Word for your situation, it is so essential to be open to God’s directions.  Remember what Mary told the servants at the wedding when they needed more wine, “whatever He tells you to do, do it.”  That must become a key part of your personal operating system.  Whatever God tells you to do, you do.

You will probably see some of His directions in His Word.  And you will probably feel some of His directions in your heart.  He will show you where you haven’t treated people correctly.  He will show you where you have made mistakes along the way.  He will show you corrective action to take.  Those corrective actions may not be easy.  They might involve work or apologies or time or other things you just don’t want to do.  But those corrective actions that God tells you to take are extremely, extremely important.

Remember that God’s power is flowing into the natural realm and gradually producing change for your situation.  When you get a direction from God for a specific action, that’s going to act like a key to unlock a door for your breakthrough, or it’s going to act like a power boost for God’s power flow.  Fundamentally, God’s power flows based on your faith.  And when you take the right actions in line with your faith, it’s like a power boost for the manifestation of your answered prayer. 

Look, you don’t have to believe me, and I know some of what I say is heresy to religious ears and to people that believe God just controls everything.  But I don’t care.  What I’m saying is the truth.  I’m living it.  And you can live it too. 

So just to recap before we move on.  For your difficult situation, the first thing you are going to do is pray about it.  And anytime you want to worry about it, you are going to pray about it some more.  You are going to cast those cares on God, just like the Bible tells us to do in 1 Peter 5:7.  The next thing you are going to do is go to God’s Word.  You are going to find the relevant verses.  You are going to take notes on how you should act and you are going to start living correctly in your situation.  You are also going to take notes on God’s will and God’s promises, so you know what God wants for your situation, so you know what to expect now that you have engaged God’s help. 

You are also going to pay very close attention to any specific directions from God.  And you are going to do them, no matter how painful or crazy they sound.  You are just going to do them.

Now the last thing we must discuss is standing in faith.  And this is one of the most difficult concepts in life.  It’s like loving those who hurt you, giving when you already feel short, and the other Biblical processes that go against human nature.  This one involves trusting Gods’ Word over our physical senses. 

Understanding faith and standing in faith is essential to truly begin seeing victory in every situation in your life.  I’m going to read you two passages to set up this discussion.  Honestly, we could write a whole book about this topic alone, and people probably have.  But if you just understand the basic concept and start applying it, it will be enough.

Hebrews 11:1 AMP - Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].

Mark 11:23-24 KJV  - For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.  Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

I think the best way I can start this discussion is with a brief story.  One day my younger daughter was having an absolutely terrible attitude.  It was so bizarre and unprovoked that it almost felt spiritual, like it was some negative spirit attacking her or something like that.  Whatever it was, it was totally uncalled for and needed to be dealt with.  Of course, I could have yelled at her, but then she would have cried and that wouldn’t have helped.  So I prayed for her, right in the Publix parking lot.  I rebuked any unclean spirit afflicting her, and I prayed that God’s Spirit would help her.

Now here is the key.  At this moment, God reminded me to just stay in faith and give it a few minutes.  Be patient.  So I didn’t say anything else, and we walked into Publix.  We really didn’t speak in Publix or on the drive home.  But I kept staying in faith.  I believed that my prayer worked and she was fine.  I don’t remember exactly what she said when we got home, but it was like the previous events never happened.  Her mood was totally corrected, and everything was fine.  Praise the Lord.

Now believe me, I know kids can have big mood swings and be temperamental.  While I know my prayer worked at that time, the point of this story is not to emphasize a particular miracle, but rather I want to emphasize the idea of standing in faith with patience.

Your job is to speak directly to the mountains in your life.  “Mountain of debt, in Jesus’ Name I command you to be removed from my life.”  “Negative attitude on my teenager, in Jesus’ Name I command you to be removed.”  “Bad relationship with my boss at work, in Jesus’ Name I command you to be removed.”  You must speak to the mountain.  You must speak to the mountain.  You must speak to the mountain.  You must speak to the mountain.

Then you go on from there as God leads you.  “Holy Spirit, help me with my kids, job, marriage, whatever.”  “God, help me to find the right verses so I can stand in faith for this situation, and let Your will be done in my life.”  So on and so forth.

And then, while you are waiting for the mountain to move, you must believe that it has already moved.  I know I’ve talked about this before and I know it sounds crazy, but this is how it works.  You believe that it’s done the moment you prayed.  You can’t see it, you can’t feel it.  Your boss still acts like a jerk.  Your kid is still acting crazy.  But you believe that it’s done.  And you listen for any more specific directions.  This is standing in faith with patience. 

Your eyes tell you it didn’t work.  Your ears tell you nothing has happened.  But, because of God’s Word, you know that it’s done.  You know that the seed has been planted, God’s power is flowing to the natural realm for you, and eventually you will see the answer to prayer that has already been released in the spiritual realm.

Remember that in Hebrews 11:1 we saw that faith is the proof of things we do not see and the conviction of their reality.  We read that faith perceives as real fact what is not revealed to the senses.  In the spiritual realm, the thing is done and God’s power is flowing.  As far as God is concerned, the thing is done.  That’s how we can rest in faith.  We know that it’s done.  Spiritual reality based on God’s Word is more real to us than what we can see with our natural senses.  And as we are in faith, that keeps the supernatural power flowing into the natural realm to change our circumstances.  It probably won’t happen immediately, but it will happen.  Just believe, and don’t doubt.

And remember, don’t just try to use this process for some material lust or something sinful.  That’s not going to work.  You need to use your faith based on God’s will for your life, as revealed to you by God’s Word or God’s Spirit.  This process works when you are using it to obtain God’s will for your life, not when you are using it for your carnal will for your life.  There’s nothing wrong with using it for material possessions, but make sure you are doing so after feeling a Holy Spirit assurance that the material thing is something God wants for your life.

Look I know this is complicated, but this is how it works.  And if you want more teachings on faith, I have a lot of podcast episodes about it, and my book Understanding and Receiving Divine Healing, available on Amazon, goes into significant detail on the subject. 

Remember.  Don’t worry.  Pray.  Study God’s Word.  Do what it says and do anything God tells you to do.  Speak to your mountains.  Stand in faith that it’s done.  God’s power is flowing, and you will see your answered prayer.

One last point I would like to make is about writing out a confession.  Romans 10:17 says that faith comes by hearing God’s Word.  For every situation in your life, you should develop a statement of declarations and beliefs based specifically on God’s Word.  You then speak this confession of God’s Word and believe it.  Just start doing this and you’ll see the internal and external benefits as you speak God’s Word over your life.

I’ve reproduced below for you my confession regarding my children.  If you are listening to this on my podcast then you can get the written version of this, and my confession for my children, at byronhowell.com/blog.  Just look for it based on the title of this message, Succeeding in Difficult Situations.

I don’t ever want to suggest my life is perfect, but I can tell you that my life is getting better all the time as I continue to use these principles to see God’s will in my life.  Sure, sometimes new problems or situations come up, but I know how to handle them, and now you do too.  Praise the Lord.

Please feel free to share this podcast with anyone you want.  If you want to be added to my email list so you get the links emailed to you please let me know.  And if I can ever pray or stand in faith with you for something, please reach out to me and I’m happy to do it.  Thank you for spending this time with me.

** Confession over my children **

Every day we increase in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man (Luke 2:52).  All of our children are taught by the Lord and great is the peace of our children (Isaiah 54:13).  God has circumcised the hearts of our children to love Him with all their heart and all their soul (Deuteronomy 30:6).  God shows mercy to our children forever (Psalm 18:50).  Our daughters are like pillars carved to adorn a palace (Psalm 144:12).  Our children are like olive shoots around our table (Psalm 128:3).  Our children shall possess the gates of their enemies (Genesis 22:17).  God has turned the hearts of our children to their parents, and our hearts to our children (Malachi 4:6).  All of our children gather and come to us.  We wear them as ornaments and put them on like a bride (Isaiah 49:18).   God has poured out His Spirit and His blessing on our children (Isaiah 44:3).  God’s Spirit will not depart from our children and God’s Word will always be on the lips of our children and on the lips of their descendants (Isaiah 59:21).  Our children are mighty in the earth (Psalms 112:2).  Our children inherit the earth (Psalm 25:13).  Our children are a blessing (Psalm 37:26).  Our children give us peace and delight (Proverbs 29:17.  We have started our children on the way they should go, and they will never depart from it (Proverbs 22:6).  Our children are established before God (Psalm 102:28).