Darril Deaton - 15 Reasons Why Things Happen: Navigating the Adversities and Conflicts of Life

15 Reasons
Why Things Happen

Navigating the Adversities and Conflicts of Life

Darril Deaton

Copyright 2016 Darril Deaton.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Scripture quotations marked HCSB are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, Copyright 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible, Holman CSB, and HCSB are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission. NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION and NIV are registered trademarks of Biblica, Inc. Use of either trademark for the offering of goods or services requires the prior written consent of Biblica US, Inc.

Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible, Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)

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ISBN: 978-1-5127-5563-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-5562-6 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016914636

WestBow Press rev. date: 09/15/2016

Contents

Part 1.
Where Do Bad Things Come From?

Part 2.
Fifteen Reasons Why Things Happen

Part 3.
Wrong and Right Ways to Respond to Adversity

T his book is dedicated to Jesus Christ and to the family He has given me. To my wife, Dawn, and my children, Denise Smith, and her husband, Curtis, and Darin and his wife, Alexis. To my church family that first heard these principles preached and then encouraged me to write this book.

I also dedicate this book to the people who brought conflict, pain, and adversity into my life. While you may have meant it for harm, God meant it for good. God used even you to shape my understanding and teach me the principles found in this book. For that, and for you, I give God thanks.

I wouldnt be who I am without the people God put in my life.

G o into any truck stop or novelty store and you will find a sign that is the equivalent to Stuff Happens. Why is that sentiment so popular that you can find it immortalized on bumper stickers, buttons, and wooden signs? Well, because stuff happens! Cars break down, ankles get sprained, bad hair days occur, keys get lost, cancer gets diagnosed, dogs throw up on your newly mopped floors, pipes burst, MS symptoms flare up, friends betray, computers crash, and landlords evict their tenants. What happened to the great life of being a Christian?!

Well, God never promised that life would be smooth sailing. In fact, He said quite the opposite. If thats the case, then why in the world would a loving God allow, or even cause, these bad things to happen? It is that very question that is addressed in Fifteen Reasons Why Things Happen the Way They Do . The answer may not be as complicated as you might think.

As a Christian and a professional counselor, the concepts in this book have been extremely useful in helping many people understand that God loves you, even in hard times (perhaps especially in hard times), and that He has a plan for it all. God is never caught by surprise, and there are so many hardships we can avoid if we learn what Hes teaching the first time around. That way, we avoid repeat lessons.

God has told us many things about adversity, and we need to be well acquainted with His teachings; otherwise we run the risk of responding in a not-so-helpful way. This book is a valuable tool in gaining clarity of Gods purpose for adversity as well as what our response should be.

Denise Smith, LPC, LCDC, VC, MA, BS

M y father was a preacher of the old school variety. After he left to go home, I spent some time going through his old Bibles. I relished the notes he had written in the margins and fly leaves. One such note loosely quoted Pauls words in Romans 8:28-29 with my dads own personal comment:

All things work together for good to
those that love God and respond to Gods love, call and purpose.

It does not say all things are good.

Our lives on earth are filled with conflicts, adversity, and trouble. This truth is reflected in our music, literature, movies, and books. Christians face the same trials as everyone else. They toil, sweat, bleed, and have headaches, cancer, and debt. Believers are not immune to evil, pain, and spiritual assault. All things are certainly not good.

Scriptures assure us in no uncertain terms that God has a purpose for the life of every single person. If thats true, it means He also has a purpose for the trials and conflicts we endure. But without understanding why things happen the way they do, we waste the whole experience. We go through trials and afflictions that benefit us absolutely nothing. And our testimony to unbelievers reflects poorly on the kingdom of God.

Nothing happens in your life that isnt sifted through Gods permissive will first. Yet believers have a stubborn resistance to adversity, often missing Gods blessings in the process. This book will help you discover why things happen the way they do and how God would have you respond His way.

I pray that you will experience nothing short of the exciting presence of God as you follow Him through times of adversity as well as times of blessing.

Part 1
Where Do Bad Things Come From?

P eople often ask, Why is this happening to me? or What did I ever do to deserve this? Joy and sorrow, victory and defeat, fulfillment and disappointmentwhy do these things happen? There is a divine purpose in the blessings we receive, but there is also this purpose in our heartaches. This is reflected in Pauls letter to the church at Corinth.

To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christs power may rest on me. That is why, for Christs sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:710 NIV)