What To Do When Things Are Contrary To Your Expectations by Archbishop Benson Idahosa: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

God Will Never Deny You Testimony

There is no day that God will deny you testimony. There may be days when you look for joy and do not find it — but testimony is always available.

Two Stories on Responding to Opposition

The first is found in Acts 9:17–20. Ananias laid hands on Saul, who received his sight and was filled with the Holy Spirit. Within days, Saul was in the synagogues preaching Christ. The people who heard him were astonished — this was the same man who had come to Damascus to arrest believers.

When accusation and opposition came, Saul did not defend himself or argue. The Bible says he increased the more in strength and confounded his critics. This same Paul, who had been killing believers, was soon lowered in a basket over the city wall to preserve his own life. The gospel will sometimes give you what you did not bargain for — but every time God extends his hand, there is purpose in it.

Many times on the way to the top, you can stumble. If you know where you are going, do not stop to examine your wounds — keep climbing.

When you come to the house of the Lord, you come to renew your strength. The world is worrisome. The job is tiring. But here there is restoration.

The Question Is Not Whether God Answers Prayer

The real question is whether we use God as our defence when life turns against us. Many believers are so accustomed to their surroundings that they no longer expect anything unusual. That familiarity can become a spiritual hazard.

When you are singing, you are singing to the glory of God. When you are dancing, you are dancing to the glory of God. Do not take God casually. Take him seriously.

The Reason Many Cannot Respond to Opposing Forces

The reason many do not know how to react to opposition is that they are not consistently found in the house of God. Church-hopping — running after every new denomination — leaves a person rootless. Those who were once under your teaching eventually outpace you, not because of superiority, but because of consistency.

It is not pride to know who you are — it is wisdom.

Hannah: A Pattern for Facing Contrary Circumstances

The second story is from 1 Samuel 1. Hannah's situation was contrary to her expectation. Her womb was shut — and the Bible says the Lord had shut it. Her adversary, Peninnah, provoked her soul year after year, using Hannah's temporary setback as a weapon.

Verse 9: Hannah rose up after eating in Shiloh and went to pray. She was in bitterness of soul, and she prayed unto the Lord and wept.

Here is what Hannah did not do:

• She did not gather allies to fight her adversary
• She did not engage in retaliatory prayer against Peninnah
• She did not murmur or spread her complaint among the congregation

Instead, she ran to God. She said, in effect, "God, this challenge is yours, not mine."

There is a kind of prayer that reports the enemy's actions and asks God to punish them in elaborate terms. That is not the prayer Hannah prayed. She prayed about her affliction and made a vow — if God would give her a son, she would return him to the Lord all the days of his life.

She Continued Praying

As she continued praying before the Lord, Eli the priest observed her and eventually said: "Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant you the petition you have asked of him."

And the woman went away — and her countenance was no more sad.

When you commit something to God and he receives it, you can wipe your face. The grief does not have to remain.

Verse 19: They rose up early in the morning and worshipped before the Lord. And the Lord remembered Hannah. In due time, she conceived and bore a son, calling his name Samuel — "because I asked him of the Lord."

The Adversary Forced the Miracle

Here is a striking truth: it was the adversary's provocation that drove Hannah to the depth of prayer she needed. God had shut her womb — not as punishment, but for purpose. The womb was not meant to open until the right time. The adversary's pressure became the very instrument that accelerated Hannah's breakthrough.

So if you are patient, what your enemy thought would destroy you, God can turn to your good.

Do not forget this: it was the adversary that made God open the womb.

From Now — Whatever You Are Facing

Whether it is in business, in your workplace, or in your marriage — when the problem is too big for you to handle alone, take it to God. If you had taken your biggest problem directly to God alone, the answer would have come faster. The result would have come instantly.

Father, meet the needs before you. Make them practical examples of godliness. Whatever the need — no matter how small — we stand by them as a church.

We are in the world of daily challenge. May we not take the challenge into our own hands. May we remember that greater is he that is in us than he that is in the world. God, avenge for your children today. Give them power to believe in your word. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Vengeance is mine, says the Lord — I will repay. If you wait on God and do not fret, if you do not jump from pillar to post thinking he has left or abandoned you, he will hear your cry. And if he acts, no one will improve on what he does.

God has answered your prayer. He has heard you already. Whatever door was shut — after this prayer, your door will be open.