October 5, 2025 • 13 mins
Life can crash unexpectedly—plans fall apart, emotions spiral, and nothing seems to go right. But faith isn’t built in comfort; it’s shaped in chaos. In this message by Pastor Lonnie, we’re reminded that God uses life’s messes to strengthen our faith. True joy isn’t pretending everything’s fine; it’s trusting that God is still at work, even in the broken pieces. With practical steps and real-life applications, this message shows how to pause instead of panic, find purpose under pressure, and see every trial as training for stronger faith.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Have you ever had.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Your phone freeze right when you needed it the most.
You're about to board a flight and you pull out
your phone for your digital boarding pass, and then all
(00:26):
of a sudden, boom, the spinning wheel of doom shows up.
Speaker 1 (00:37):
Nothing moves, nothing works. That's life. Sometimes, just when everything
seems smooth, something crashes. And I would submit that faith,
(01:11):
faith itself isn't proven.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
When everything runs perfectly.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
It's forged.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
Faith is forged in the glitches, precisely in those what is.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
Even happening moments.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
That's when faith has an opportunity to perk up and grow.
And when James wrote this letter to these early Christians,
they were scattered, they were persecuted, they were confused their lives,
(02:06):
their lives were messy, and his words to them.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
Still speaks powerfully to us.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
When life feels how to control, James wrote, considerate pure joy,
my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
(02:43):
considerate pure joy. That sounds insane, It sounds insane, but
you gotta admit life does. Does it have to make
sense for faith to work? Because a point could be made,
(03:10):
and those who have some years of life behind them,
you realize this that we certainly do not live to
make sense of things.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
We can never make sense of things.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
We live to make faith, and that's where living comes
to its fruition. Joy doesn't mean pretending that everything.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
Is fine, and that's not what James is getting out here.
Speaker 2 (03:33):
It means that it is trusting that God, that God
is still working even when everything looks broke. It's like,
but you order something from Amazon Prime.
Speaker 1 (03:54):
The box shows up.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
And the boxes all beat not it may be torn,
but the thing that you need is still inside the box.
It's inside And sometimes.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
God delivers growth to us in messy packages. And then James,
he doesn't say.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Be happy about your suffering, he says as he talks
about this pure joy.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
He says, be happy because we know that.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
The what the testing of your faith produces, perseverance.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
It's his take when things are round.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
So don't count it joy because of the pain of life.
Count it joy because of what God is able to
do through it. Totally changes how we handle upsetting times.
Joy it's not thinking a smile, it's believing that God
(05:12):
hasn't stopped being good. God has not stopped being good
even when the packaging that we see.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
Is broken and may look ugly. Faith is it a
short cut.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
And as James is getting out, our faith is really
it's an endurance training and he sees all of the
challenges as part of what we endure to grow in
our faith. Trials don't have to break your faith. And
it's precisely because of the trials that you can build it.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
Think of him like going to the gym.
Speaker 2 (06:01):
Nobody that I know brags about being able to lift
what they call it the pink the two pound dumbbells.
Nothing exciting about lifting a two pounder.
Speaker 1 (06:11):
We don't talk about that.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
Strength grows where through resistance, you know, no gain without pain,
no resistance, there won't be growth.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
No pressure, no power.
Speaker 2 (06:35):
So God's not trying to make life easy for us, friends.
God is trying to make in trying times, to make
your faith straw, not comfort, but character, not shortcuts, strength,
(06:59):
not easy faith, but mature faith.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
Mature faith.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
So instead of crying out to God, why me, I'm
want to challenge you and encourage you to start asking
what now.
Speaker 1 (07:19):
It's a totally different perspective.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
When we ask what now, we do the what what
is God trying to grow in me through this?
Speaker 1 (07:32):
What can I learn, what can I surrender? What am
I to give to God?
Speaker 2 (07:46):
So here's some I guess, some practical actions.
Speaker 1 (07:53):
For when life feels like a mess. First, just in
a practical way, pause before.
Speaker 2 (08:04):
Reacting when things go wrong, Take a breath and say,
I'm going to look at this that this is training,
it's the training program. Don't rush to fix everything. First,
ask God what you are wanting to do in me.
Speaker 1 (08:25):
Through this.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
Pause before reacting, Name the frustration.
Speaker 1 (08:34):
And then rename it.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
Say out loud what's hard that you're facing, and then
remind yourself this is an opportunity. It is an opportunity
for my faith to be able to grow through it.
And when you do that, it shifts the mindset from
panning to purpose, which is healthy, which is healing, which
(09:05):
is redemptive. And then it's a good idea to every
day to find one thing to thank God for in
the midst of.
Speaker 1 (09:13):
The challenges you go through gratitude.
Speaker 2 (09:16):
Obviously, gratitude will never erase the pain, but it certainly
realigns the perspective. Even in chaos. There's something to think
God for and then ask for wisdom not an escape.
(09:45):
Instead of praying, try this God make this stop. Try
praying something like this, God, show me.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
How to walk through this.
Speaker 2 (09:57):
How am I to walk through this and not step
on the land mines? I know I'm to get over
there to that side. Help me to walk through this.
Wisdom is what turns.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
Pain into progress.
Speaker 2 (10:13):
And so in a very practical way, James is encouraging
the church to do likewise, and that's good wisdom for
us today. And then stay connected, all right, don't be
an isolate.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
Don't isolate.
Speaker 2 (10:31):
Talk to someone who you can pray with, someone who
encourages you. I love the conversations I have with people
who you will share something about what maybe a small
group you're part of, or or a Bible study you're
with word or a group that you get with regularly
and you share.
Speaker 1 (10:47):
Some things on the faith.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
But you also have some quiet time together where you
share how you can pray for.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
Each other or what you're going through.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
Stay connected, don't isolate.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
So faith.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
It isn't about pretending that life is perfect. It is
about trusting God, who is perfect, even when life has glitches.
So when things freeze up, when your plan spends out,
(11:25):
remember that that isn't failure.
Speaker 1 (11:30):
It could be an opportunity that God has to train.
Speaker 2 (11:32):
You, to take you to the next level of your
Chris Christ following discipleship.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
And on the other side of it.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
Your faith will not just survive, your faith will be stronger,
stronger than ever. Would you please stand for prayer, Our
heavenly Father, We thank you that even when everything around
(12:09):
us glitches and breaks, you never freeze, you never fail,
and you never stop working. Some of us walked in
here today caring confusion, pressure, disappointment, and pain.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
But we believe you're still God.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
In the middle of it. You're not punishing us, You're
preparing us. You're not breaking us down, You're building us up.
So teach us to see our trials not as setbacks,
(13:00):
but as training. Just as we are, give us wisdom
when we want to escape, just.
Speaker 1 (13:12):
As we are, give us perseverance when we want comfort,
And just as we are, give us joy, the deep.
Speaker 2 (13:27):
Kind that comes from knowing that You're in control. In
your name, we pray Ahmen.
Have you ever had.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Your phone freeze right when you needed it the most.
You're about to board a flight and you pull out
your phone for your digital boarding pass, and then all
(00:26):
of a sudden, boom, the spinning wheel of doom shows up.
Speaker 1 (00:37):
Nothing moves, nothing works. That's life. Sometimes, just when everything
seems smooth, something crashes. And I would submit that faith,
(01:11):
faith itself isn't proven.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
When everything runs perfectly.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
It's forged.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
Faith is forged in the glitches, precisely in those what is.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
Even happening moments.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
That's when faith has an opportunity to perk up and grow.
And when James wrote this letter to these early Christians,
they were scattered, they were persecuted, they were confused their lives,
(02:06):
their lives were messy, and his words to them.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
Still speaks powerfully to us.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
When life feels how to control, James wrote, considerate pure joy,
my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
(02:43):
considerate pure joy. That sounds insane, It sounds insane, but
you gotta admit life does. Does it have to make
sense for faith to work? Because a point could be made,
(03:10):
and those who have some years of life behind them,
you realize this that we certainly do not live to
make sense of things.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
We can never make sense of things.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
We live to make faith, and that's where living comes
to its fruition. Joy doesn't mean pretending that everything.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
Is fine, and that's not what James is getting out here.
Speaker 2 (03:33):
It means that it is trusting that God, that God
is still working even when everything looks broke. It's like,
but you order something from Amazon Prime.
Speaker 1 (03:54):
The box shows up.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
And the boxes all beat not it may be torn,
but the thing that you need is still inside the box.
It's inside And sometimes.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
God delivers growth to us in messy packages. And then James,
he doesn't say.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Be happy about your suffering, he says as he talks
about this pure joy.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
He says, be happy because we know that.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
The what the testing of your faith produces, perseverance.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
It's his take when things are round.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
So don't count it joy because of the pain of life.
Count it joy because of what God is able to
do through it. Totally changes how we handle upsetting times.
Joy it's not thinking a smile, it's believing that God
(05:12):
hasn't stopped being good. God has not stopped being good
even when the packaging that we see.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
Is broken and may look ugly. Faith is it a
short cut.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
And as James is getting out, our faith is really
it's an endurance training and he sees all of the
challenges as part of what we endure to grow in
our faith. Trials don't have to break your faith. And
it's precisely because of the trials that you can build it.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
Think of him like going to the gym.
Speaker 2 (06:01):
Nobody that I know brags about being able to lift
what they call it the pink the two pound dumbbells.
Nothing exciting about lifting a two pounder.
Speaker 1 (06:11):
We don't talk about that.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
Strength grows where through resistance, you know, no gain without pain,
no resistance, there won't be growth.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
No pressure, no power.
Speaker 2 (06:35):
So God's not trying to make life easy for us, friends.
God is trying to make in trying times, to make
your faith straw, not comfort, but character, not shortcuts, strength,
(06:59):
not easy faith, but mature faith.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
Mature faith.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
So instead of crying out to God, why me, I'm
want to challenge you and encourage you to start asking
what now.
Speaker 1 (07:19):
It's a totally different perspective.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
When we ask what now, we do the what what
is God trying to grow in me through this?
Speaker 1 (07:32):
What can I learn, what can I surrender? What am
I to give to God?
Speaker 2 (07:46):
So here's some I guess, some practical actions.
Speaker 1 (07:53):
For when life feels like a mess. First, just in
a practical way, pause before.
Speaker 2 (08:04):
Reacting when things go wrong, Take a breath and say,
I'm going to look at this that this is training,
it's the training program. Don't rush to fix everything. First,
ask God what you are wanting to do in me.
Speaker 1 (08:25):
Through this.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
Pause before reacting, Name the frustration.
Speaker 1 (08:34):
And then rename it.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
Say out loud what's hard that you're facing, and then
remind yourself this is an opportunity. It is an opportunity
for my faith to be able to grow through it.
And when you do that, it shifts the mindset from
panning to purpose, which is healthy, which is healing, which
(09:05):
is redemptive. And then it's a good idea to every
day to find one thing to thank God for in
the midst of.
Speaker 1 (09:13):
The challenges you go through gratitude.
Speaker 2 (09:16):
Obviously, gratitude will never erase the pain, but it certainly
realigns the perspective. Even in chaos. There's something to think
God for and then ask for wisdom not an escape.
(09:45):
Instead of praying, try this God make this stop. Try
praying something like this, God, show me.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
How to walk through this.
Speaker 2 (09:57):
How am I to walk through this and not step
on the land mines? I know I'm to get over
there to that side. Help me to walk through this.
Wisdom is what turns.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
Pain into progress.
Speaker 2 (10:13):
And so in a very practical way, James is encouraging
the church to do likewise, and that's good wisdom for
us today. And then stay connected, all right, don't be
an isolate.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
Don't isolate.
Speaker 2 (10:31):
Talk to someone who you can pray with, someone who
encourages you. I love the conversations I have with people
who you will share something about what maybe a small
group you're part of, or or a Bible study you're
with word or a group that you get with regularly
and you share.
Speaker 1 (10:47):
Some things on the faith.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
But you also have some quiet time together where you
share how you can pray for.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
Each other or what you're going through.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
Stay connected, don't isolate.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
So faith.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
It isn't about pretending that life is perfect. It is
about trusting God, who is perfect, even when life has glitches.
So when things freeze up, when your plan spends out,
(11:25):
remember that that isn't failure.
Speaker 1 (11:30):
It could be an opportunity that God has to train.
Speaker 2 (11:32):
You, to take you to the next level of your
Chris Christ following discipleship.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
And on the other side of it.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
Your faith will not just survive, your faith will be stronger,
stronger than ever. Would you please stand for prayer, Our
heavenly Father, We thank you that even when everything around
(12:09):
us glitches and breaks, you never freeze, you never fail,
and you never stop working. Some of us walked in
here today caring confusion, pressure, disappointment, and pain.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
But we believe you're still God.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
In the middle of it. You're not punishing us, You're
preparing us. You're not breaking us down, You're building us up.
So teach us to see our trials not as setbacks,
(13:00):
but as training. Just as we are, give us wisdom
when we want to escape, just.
Speaker 1 (13:12):
As we are, give us perseverance when we want comfort,
And just as we are, give us joy, the deep.
Speaker 2 (13:27):
Kind that comes from knowing that You're in control. In
your name, we pray Ahmen.
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