“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed [changed] into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

Believers spend far too much time praying, “God, change my circumstances; change my coworkers; change my family situation; change the conditions in my life.” Yet we seldom pray the most important prayer: “Change me, Lord. I am the one who stands in need of prayer.”

You may not want to think about it or even accept it, but if you have determined to follow Jesus with all your heart, Satan has marked you for destruction. And he’s going to flood your life with troubles of all kinds.

The apostle Peter warns, “The end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers” (1 Peter 4:7). In other words, “This is no time for lightness. You must get sober-minded about spiritual things because it is now an issue of life and death.”

We read in the book of Mark that a distraught father brought his demon-possessed son to Jesus’ disciples seeking deliverance. The boy wasn’t simply troubled or rebellious, he was full of evil spirits that controlled his every action. His situation was well-known all over the region and he was considered absolutely hopeless. Both deaf and speechless, he spewed out only guttural sounds. Physically he was emaciated, and his father had to hold onto him continually because the demons tried to throw him into the nearest river, lake or open fire. What a horrible situation!

God’s conversation with Abraham regarding his future son is a lesson in faith for us all. The patriarch was sitting at the door of his tent during the heat of the day when suddenly three men appeared before him, standing under a nearby tree. Abraham went out to meet the men and visited with them. During their conversation, the Lord inquired about the whereabouts of Sarah, Abraham’s wife, and then he said something incredible: “Behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son” (Genesis 18:10).

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over” (Psalm 23:5).

Of all the wonderful promises God gives us in this psalm, this is one of the most glorious. He says he is going to set a table for us, spread wonderful food upon it, and then serve us a feast. And he does all this in front of our enemies.

Nobody wants to hear bad news and the church today is no exception; the American church seems to be preoccupied with a “feel-good” message. This attitude is prevalent in many of the books and magazines we find in Christian bookstores. It is almost as if our leaders are saying, “Relax! God is our Daddy and we’re all his kids and we’re meant to have a good time.”

The spirit of discouragement is Satan’s most potent weapon against God’s elect. Most often, he uses it to convince us we have brought God’s wrath upon ourselves by not measuring up to his holy standards. But the apostle Paul urges us not to fall prey to the devil’s snare: “Lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices” (2 Corinthians 2:11).

“And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14).

Many in the church today try to determine the nearness of Christ’s return by reading the signs of the times. Yet one of the clearest statements Jesus makes about his second coming is contained in the verse above: The end will come only after the gospel has been preached to all nations — as a testimony.

Tempting the Lord begins when God allows a crisis in our lives to intensify. Why does he do this? What is he after? Our Lord allows this to happen so he can get at the last roots of our unbelief! His Spirit goes into every chamber of our hearts, searching out the most damnable things — pride, self-sufficiency and all else that hinders his fullness in us.

Throughout history, people have believed they could handle any calamity well enough without faith in God. The prophet Isaiah wrote that such scoffers boast, “When the overflowing scourge passes through, it will not come to us” (Isaiah 28:15). Isaiah calls these people spiritually blind (see Isaiah 26:11); in other words, they will not attribute any calamity to God’s work. Instead, they will act as if God is not in heaven at all.