When You're Perplexed

I've been a lot of different people. corners of the body of Christ and I have found so many people. Who are uncomfortable with the two things I'm dealing with today, and so are some of you. When you're perplexed, when you don't get it. And the other thing they are dealing with is sadness and grief.

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed. We are perplexed, but not in despair. That's 1 Corinthians 4:8, and this is Destined for Victory, where we feature the preaching ministry of Pastor Paul Shepard. You know, if you live long enough, you'll face some gut-wrenching trials, seasons of life when you are hard-pressed, grief-stricken, confused. How can you persevere through the pain, and how can you keep it together when your world seems to be falling apart?

Answers come your way next on today's Destined for Victory. Online, you'll find us at pastorpaul.net, where you can listen to any of our recent messages on demand, including the one you'll hear next. That's pastorpaul.net. Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts at Spotify or wherever you enjoy your podcast.

Now here's today's Destined for Victory message. When you're perplexed. I often put a time stamp On messages In order to give context to people who will listen. days, weeks, months, years later Not knowing the context in which the message was brought.

So I'm bringing this message in September of 2021. Along with many members of our church. My heart is broken today. Because just A few days ago, A beloved member of our church. a young woman in her early forties.

died from complications of COVID-19. She was part of our praise team. As well as a member of our church's gospel ensemble, Voices of Destiny. Just earlier in this service, We Watch the video of her leading voices. in a wonderful song.

And many of our hearts are broken. I had the privilege of being her pastor not only here at Destiny, but in. The years that I pastored abundant life Christian fellowship. She was a dear and faithful member. We're hurting as her church family, and we're hurting with her.

Natural family Her mom Her daughter Daughters She was not only That, but she was even a grandmom. And having recently become grandparents, my wife and I, we know. How dear and precious. They are And so it's just heartbreaking. That Her life was taken from our midst.

So soon. Over the past couple of days, I've been processing My own grief, and I realize that as a pastor, I'm a spiritual parent. That's why this hurts so much. This is one of my spiritual kids. And as a pastor, as a spiritual parent, You got to look out for the whole family.

And I I realized that um that a lot of people would be looking to to get some Hope and help. from what remarks I would give today. And so I'm preaching to myself. And And I'm preaching to those who want to know. How to process times like this.

I thought about a phrase. In Paul's 2 Corinthians 4. Verse 8. says we are hard pressed On every side. Yet not crushed.

It's the second phrase that Caught my mind as I thought, what in the world am I going to say while I'm dealing with my own grief? The second phrase in this verse says, We are perplexed. But not in despair. Can you imagine that? The Apostle Paul.

Said, I'm perplexed. He spoke not only for himself, but for all the apostles. The context of 2 Corinthians, by the way, was Paul was defending himself against vicious attacks from his enemies who tried to. discredit him to all the churches he had founded. And these people would go around when Paul wasn't there, because he couldn't be, you know, an in-person pastor with all the different churches that he founded.

He would visit them as he could, but he just served as a spiritual dad, would write them letters and that sort of thing. And they had their own local leadership when he was not there. But the fact is. A Paul's Enemies would go to these churches like Corinth and say, Y'all really shouldn't pay any attention to that man because he's not a legitimate apostle. And they go around and tell his story.

In fact, he was the biggest persecutor of the church. I don't know why y'all think he's suddenly some spiritual giant. And they tried to discredit him at every turn. Yeah. And so the 2 Corinthians has an edge to it.

If you read it and compare it with like 1 Corinthians and the other passage, you'll see that he had a little tude when he wrote 2 Corinthians. Because he's sick of these people. Trying to discredit What God has done not only for him But through him to bless the body of Christ. And so, with his edge, he's like, of course, I'm a legitimate apostle. And look at all the hell I gotta go through.

In order to make my apostleship solid and sound. And that's the context in which he talks about. These things, he says, I'm hard pressed on every side, along with the other apostles. We can't catch a break. He said, but we're not crushed.

Another phrase he said in that passage: I'm persecuted. You read about how much persecution he experienced later in Second Corinthians. He said, but I'm not forsaken. He said, I'm struck down. But I'm not destroyed.

But the phrase that caught my attention as I thought about how I feel today. and many other believers. It was this one. We are perplexed. But not in despair.

PEY The great anointed apostle. Who wrote so much of what we read and enjoy and are benefited by in the New Testament? He said, I'm going to just be honest with y'all.

Sometimes I don't get it. Perplexed. No need of looking up the Greek. I already did it.

Well, he couldn't have meant he was perplexed. I mean he's annoying it. There must be a bad transl. No, it's an excellent translation. I looked at the Greek.

The Greek is there are times when I am just Perplexed I'm just, I don't get it. I don't understand it. Can't comprehend it. It doesn't make sense.

Now I am a world-class Christian. By God's grace, God has given me. Exposure to lots of different areas of the body of Christ. I preached in high church settings with pipe organs and all that, and sophisticated places. I preached in get-down storefronts, boogie-down.

Shout out of their clothes. I mean, just. I can handle it all. I've been a lot of different Corners of the body of Christ and I have found so many people. Who are uncomfortable with the two things I'm dealing with today, and so are some of you.

When you're perplexed, when you don't get it. And the other thing they are dealing with is sadness and grief. Some of them try to dismiss it. And say, put that aside. I've been fussed at.

for not being happy in church. Have you ever been to those kind of churches where they're gonna get up and they're gonna make you feel bad cause you don't feel good? Yo, see, y'all haven't been to some of these places. I've been to these places, they say, everybody get out of their face. Praise the Lord.

What's the matter with you? I've been to funerals where they're mad. That people are crying at the funeral. Y'all see y'all need to go with me some of these places.

Somebody get up and fuss. This is a celebration. Yeah. And through the tears. We can find some things to celebrate.

But do me a favor And don't ask me to be happy. When I'm not. Do you know why God gave you tear ducts? Because every now and then you're supposed to use them real good.

Sometimes the best thing. you can do. Is have yourself a really good Christian. Right.

Some of y'all don't know it 'cause you haven't done it. And sometimes you got to prime the pump. There are times when I haven't had to do it this week. It's just been the sorrow is there, but there have been times in my life when I knew I needed to cry, and I primed the pump. I will put on the saddest songs.

I got in my iTunes library. Oh, I'm telling you what Pastor has done. And I'll just get in my car and drive and put on the saddest, the songs that evoke certain emotions. I know the ones that do. I'm a musician.

Music is very, very personal for me. I know the stuff I can, and I just bawl and cry. Don't want anybody around because I don't need nobody trying to comfort me.

Sometimes, please get your hands off me. Leave me alone. Don't go away. The second half of today's Destined for Victory message, featuring Pastor Paul Shepard, is coming right up. In John chapter 14, Jesus said, He is the way, the truth, and the life.

No one comes to the Father except through me, he said. That's why Destined for Victory is here, to teach timeless truth for a victorious life by pointing people to Jesus Christ. But we can't do it without your help. As you know, summer is always a critical time financially for our media ministry.

So as God leads, please consider making a generous donation today so that we can bring you these messages the whole year through. Give safely and securely online at pastorpaul.net. That's pastorpaul.net or call 855-339-5500. Have you ever asked God why? Ever been confused as to why bad things happened and the good things didn't?

Let's see what God says about it next in the rest of today's message when you're perplexed. You know, Solomon. said there's a time Yeah. And when it's time to mourn, that's what you're supposed to do. That's not the time to grin, that's the time to mourn.

Read your Bible. When godly people would go home There are times when it's stated right in the scriptures. That the people would mourn. You're supposed to, when Moses died, they said Israel took thirty full days. 30 full days and nothing but mourning.

We not singing no happy songs. We're just going to mourn, tell Moses stories, and mourn. Feel our feelings and mourn. When the first martyr, Stephen, died in Acts chapter 7. The Bible says the saints gathered his body after seeing him stoned to death.

And the saints mourned. I don't like this brand of Christianity. Where they try to make you always be joyful. Joy should always be resident, but joy doesn't always manifest the same way.

Sometimes I have joy in the midst of my tears, in the midst of how I'm feeling. And that is legitimate. Years ago, I heard a preacher, a hyper-faith preacher, talk about the fact that we had no business in the body of Christ grieving. I was watching him on TV as he expounded this, and I spoke back out to the TV. I said, there's a Greek word for that, baloney.

There is no level of faith. That will prevent you from grieving. In fact, It is because of faith and because Oh. The grace of God. that I can grieve and yet move on.

And so. I just wanted to share with y'all my own. Devotion as I'm working through losing this spiritual daughter. And it's okay to be perplexed. To say, God, really?

Those who knew she was wrestling in the last moments there, it was really, really troubling and challenging. They were praying, Lord, keep her here. Raise her up! Praying and in faith. What no lack of faith.

If fate could have kept her here, she'd be here. Because we had faith. And when you pray in faith and you don't get what you want. It's okay to be perplexed. It's okay to say I don't get it.

About, I think it was about seven years ago, we were still in the hotels. We were in the last months of being in hotels before we built this worship center. And we're able to move in several months before moving in here. One of my brothers was murdered. He had just been an MOD.

The Saturday before. We had had great fellowship as MLD always. has and what have you. got out of his car one night. with his work bag, computer, and stuff.

coming home late. One evening, somebody jumps out of the bushes. and demands what he had and I don't know if he Struggled. I don't think he did. I didn't get that sense at all from what the police report showed.

That the guy just decided maybe because he could recognize him or whatever. to just shoot him. And he's killed outside of his home. and had just been with us in fellowship. I am not like my deep friends.

Who have an explanation? For everything. Do you know some of these people who have never met a mystery they couldn't solve? Oh These people, oh, the body of Christ is crawling with them. Let me tell you why this happened.

Listen, folks, there are times we are perplexed. And I'm comforted by the fact that I'm not by myself. The Apostle Paul said, at times. I don't get it. I don't understand.

It doesn't make sense.

And you know, we love stuff that just makes sense. Even if we don't like it, at least let it make sense. But there are times when both we don't like it. And it doesn't make sense. What do you do?

When You're perplexed. And all I want to tell you, and I'm done. Is I think we have to admit there are things we will never know in this life. See, I grew up in a hymn-singing church, and one of the hymns had a course that said we'll understand it better Well, some of y'all been to church. We'll understand.

Understand it better by and by, not here and now. Not let me just go on a quick fast and have God speak to me, and then I bring back all the information. See, that's the way some folk go, oh, I'm gonna just go shut in for a little while, and God gonna give me this revelation. Do you know God can be more silent than anybody you've ever met? Whoa!

I've had God speak to me. I came to California because God spoke. I've had wonderful times of God speaking very directly, very, very in a significant way. God spoke. I heard from From God.

But other the times Everybody was talking but God. Everybody running their mouth. Everybody has something to say.

Meanwhile, he said, God, what you think of that? Absolutely nothing. His silence can be deafening. But Paul, this same Paul, said in 1 Corinthians 13 and 9, for we know in power. Yeah.

Therefore, when we prophesy, we can only prophesy in part. And so don't expect to get it all now. You're not gonna get it all now. You're gonna get some of it now. You know what God reveals to us?

I've learned. You know what God lets you know? What you need to know. In order to do his will here and now. He's not gonna give you your five-year projection.

Oh, and we hate that because we love projections. God, tell me what you're going to be doing in my life five years from now. Minister Joyce said, I don't know about tomorrow. I just live. From day to day.

Then you better not try. to project into the future. James, in his epistle, in his letter, James said, Listen, y'all say today, tomorrow, I'm going to do this and that, next week, next year, I'm going to do this and that. And he said, you need to cut all of that out. He said, what is your life?

It's a vapor. quickly vanishes. And you're outta here. And you don't always get Preview.

Some folks get previews. I've met people who their loved ones said they told them that they were checking out, said the Lord's gonna take me, and all that. And it happened just like they said. Wow, they got a preview. Most of us don't get a preview.

Do you know when you find out that you're dying? When you go.

So what do you do? When you're perplexed. Here's my answer and I'm done. You focus on what you do know. Don't expect to know everything.

Some things you're not going to know.

So, what we got to do is live our lives, and when these times of being perplexed. Come of these times of I don't get it. Come, don't spend your time trying to get what you don't get. Just say I don't get it. It's over.

If love could have kept her here, she'd be here. If faith could have kept her here, she'd be here. If family could have kept her here, she'd be here. Those things couldn't do it.

So what do we do? And I'm preaching this for people who, whatever you're going through in your life, whatever the crisis is you're facing in your life, when it doesn't turn out the way you want, when it makes no sense. Then you've got to learn to do what I'm telling myself and telling you right now. You got to focus on what you do know. I just love that last line: focus on what you know.

And as you heard Pastor Paul say earlier in the message, focus on who you know. The Lord is always faithful to bring you comfort, peace, and victory according to his riches in Christ Jesus. Thanks so much for being here with us for today's Destined for Victory message when you are perplexed. To hear any recent message on demand, stop by pastorpaul.net. That's pastorpaul.net.

And while you're there, be sure to check out our online store for some of the best Christian resources on the market, including books and DVD messages from Pastor Paul Shepard. Speaking of outstanding resources, we've got a brand new one to share with you today. It's our latest booklet, Overcoming Bitterness. Based on some of Pastor Paul Shepard's best sermons, this message will show you some key strategies to removing bitterness from your heart once and for all. And as you follow along, you'll gain some great insights about how to reclaim the peace and joy God wants you to have in your life.

Again, that's Overcoming Bitterness, a helpful book, but for anyone who still struggles to let go of past wounds and press on towards victory in Christ. Request your copy today for your generous gift to Destin for Victory.

Now, you can give by phone by calling 855-339-5500. That's 855-339-5500. Or visit pastorpaul.net to make a safe and secure donation online. You can also mail your gift to Destined for Victory, Post Office Box 1767, Fremont, California, 94538. You know what God reveals to us?

I've learned. You know what God lets you know? What you need to know. In order to do his will here and now. He's not going to give you your five-year projection.

That's tomorrow in our continuing message when you're perplexed. But until then, remember: he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion. In Christ, you are destined for victory.