Welcome to the In Touch podcast with Charles Stanley for Monday, October 20th. Today, you'll hear

scriptural truth that helps us come to terms with pain, suffering, and hardship. Our series begins as we

explore the principle of brokenness. Most people do not understand what the Bible teaches about brokenness, and the last thing they want

is a good case of it. And so what they do is they try to avoid it at any expense, at all cost,

run the other direction, and in a day when there is so much talk about prosperity and God

healing all of our sicknesses and God wanting

us to be happy and everything just perfect, I want to tell you, the message of brokenness does

not appeal to those who do not want God's best, but who want some kind of personal satisfaction.

But here's what I want to say to you. In this series,

you're going to understand what God has been doing in some areas of your life that you've wondered.

God, why do you keep on letting this happen? Likewise, you're going to be able to look back and see

some times and experiences and some

hurtful times, times of pain and suffering that you've complained, questioned God,

doubted God, complained to your friends, argued with God about it. You're going to be able to

look back and thank him for continuing the process even though you didn't like it.

So I want to encourage you, my friend, that you'll not miss a single one of these messages

because here is the heart of what God is trying to do in all of our life.

And I believe if you'll stay with this, you'll understand something about your life, about suffering, pain, about sickness, hardships,

trials, and hurts that maybe you've not quite understood.

And I want to begin by turning to John, Chapter 12.

And if you'll turn there with me, Jesus is beginning to talk to his apostles about his death.

And in two verses of this passage, he sort of lays the groundwork of this whole series.

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