PRACTICE COUNTER- WHAT?????????

“Thinking and living against the wind!!!”

Text: James 1:2-4

The road to the next level is winding and quite unpleasant. In fact, we often see it as the road down to lower levels rather than up to the next level. It takes an incredible amount of wind beneath our wings to propel us to higher orbit, and that wind comes from the most unlikely source - PAIN! Stress, pain, and suffering are often God’s wind in your face which propels us to the NEXT LEVEL!

If you were to take your spiritual journey and chart it on a graph - you would discover you will have these “pain spikes” - suffering times where something bad happens in your life.

Understanding how God uses pain and suffering forces us to

PRACTICE ________________________ INTELLIGENT THINKING

In order for us to get to the next level you’ve got to think counter intelligently - against the wind

Consider it _____________ _________, my brothers, whenever you face _________ of many kinds (James 1:2)

In this you ____________________ __________________ (I Pet. 1:6)

Understand that ________________ always follows _________________

Understand God’s synergy – Romans 8:28

PRACTICE COUNTER I______________________LIVING

Using pain and suffering as the “wind” that propels us to next level living requires going against one’s intuition.

A counterintuitive response worked for (Bible characters)

1.

2.

3.

The testing of your faith develops something - what is it?  _____________________

Perseverance must finish it’s _______________ in you.

“So that you will be _____________________, not lacking in anything.”

Most of us are content to go with the wind in pursuit of that last thing...

We want that last part first...

THE KEY TO COUNTERINTUITIVE LIVING IS COMING TO THE REALITY THAT

THE _______________ IS YOUR __________________.