Most of us want quick solutions to our problems, but God wants to make sure that all of His disciplines for character development in us are accomplished before He removes the problems.

He is also concerned that the right procedure be followed in solving the problems.  It is the process of solving our problems that constitutes the important chapters of our life message and becomes the greatest help to other people.

We want to get out from under the pressure of our problems, but God wants to use that pressure to motivates us to a greater level of spiritual maturity than we would otherwise have achieved.

Often our present problems are the result of past disobedience to the initial promptings of the Holy Spirit.  Now God is using these problems to apply the pressures that we need for complete obedience.  If we fail to benefit from our present problems, He will have to raise up new problems.


I. The benefit of receiving more grace from God.
-   Paul's prayer was that grace would be multiplied to every Christian.  How then do we receive this grace?  There is only one way - we receive God's grace through Humility.
     "… God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble"
   Nothing is more humbling than experiencing conflicts which we
    cannot solve, especially when others know about our problems.
    It is this very experience, however, that God uses to break our
    Pride and give us grace.  That grace will be the prompting of
    God's Spirit to receive the next four benefits which can result
     from our problems.

II. The Benefit of Self-examination.
God requires that each of us maintain a periodic program of self-examination.  "For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.  But when we are judged, we are chastened of the