Do You Have a Safety Net?

[Do You Have a Safety Net?]( Current Teaching Series [God's Prescription for a Healthy Life]( [Listen to Today's Broadcast]( [Do You Have a Safety Net?]( By Rick Warren — 05/01/2022 [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email]( “Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble.” 1 Peter 3:8 (NIV) As a pastor, I see situations every day that no one should ever have to go through alone. Nobody should ever have to wait alone in the hospital while a loved one is in life-or-death surgery. No woman should ever have to wait alone for the lab report on a problem pregnancy. Nobody should ever have to wait alone for news from a battlefield. No one should ever have to stand alone at the edge of an open grave. Nobody should ever have to spend the first night alone when their spouse has just walked out. Life’s tough times and tragedies are inevitable; each of us will face them. But you don’t need to go through them alone. You need God’s safety net to help hold you up through difficult times. What is God’s safety net? It is a group of other believers—a handful of people who are really committed to you. We call this kind of group a community. Here’s God’s plan for community: “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it” (1 Corinthians 12:26 NIV). Community is God’s answer to despair. Romans 12:15 expresses a similar idea: “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn” (NIV). The first part of that verse is easy to do. When something good happens to someone, it’s often easy to join in on the party. But when someone is having a tough time, it can seem more difficult to get involved. But, really, it’s simple. When you’re going through a crisis, you don’t want advice; you just want somebody to sit with you, hold your hand, put an arm around your shoulder, or cry with you. You want someone simply to be with you. Paul says, “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up” (1 Thessalonians 5:11 NIV). But encouraging someone else doesn’t always mean giving a pep talk or offering words of wisdom. Sometimes the best kind of encouragement is just sitting in silence, waiting and weeping with a friend. Do you have a safety net, a group of fellow Christians that you know you can count on in life’s toughest times? If not, go out today and begin building those friendships. The hard times in life are inevitable. Don’t go into them unprepared. [PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>]( Talk It Over - Who is part of your safety net? How have you worked to build community with them? - What are the practical ways you can be part of a safety net for someone else? - What is the difference in being part of a Bible study and being part of a community? The post [Do You Have a Safety Net?]( appeared first on [Pastor Rick's Daily Hope](. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email]( [Get The Daniel Plan Hardcover Book when you give a gift to support Daily Hope!]( What started as a simple weight-loss resolution by Pastor Rick Warren has become a journey called The Daniel Plan that’s helping thousands transform their lives. Created with biblical insight and assistance from medical and fitness experts, The Daniel Plan guides you through an innovative approach to achieving a better, healthier life based on the essentials of faith, food, fitness, focus, and friends. The Daniel Plan is a powerful Bible-based program, that has helped thousands of people lose weight, increase their energy, and improve their relationships, all while growing closer to the Lord! It’s the essential ingredient you need to change your health from the inside out! [LEARN MORE]( [Complete Audio Series (Purchase)]( Includes 9 full-length messages from Pastor Rick's series God's Prescription for a Healthy Life. [LEARN MORE]( [Series Summary]( Message 1: Why We Need Each Other Message 2: Getting Your Ship Out of the Harbor Message 3: Setting Goals in Faith Message 4: What It Takes to Really Change Message 5: God's Prescription for Health Message 6: Winning With the Hand You're Dealt Message 7: The Awesome Power of Focus Message 8: The Amazing Power of Forgiveness Message 9: The Awesome Power of Faith [PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST]( Pastor Rick Warren [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Linkedin]( Enjoy today's devotional? Listen to Pastor Rick’s daily audio teaching at [PastorRick.com]( Did someone forward this devotional to you? [Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional.]( As the founding pastor of Saddleback Church with his wife Kay, Dr. Rick Warren leads a 30,000-member congregation in California with campuses in major cities around the world. As an author, his book [The Purpose Driven Life]( is one of the best-selling nonfiction books in publishing history. It has been translated into 74 languages and sold more than 50 million copies in all formats. His book [The Purpose Driven Church]( was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the century. Rick also founded [The PEACE Plan]( to address five global issues—spiritual emptiness, self-serving leadership, poverty, disease, and illiteracy—through the power of ordinary people in the local church. You can listen to Pastor Rick’s Daily Hope, his daily 25-minute audio teaching, and sign up for his free daily devotionals at [PastorRick.com](. © 2022 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe by clicking the link below. Sent to: {EMAIL} [Unsubscribe]( Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, 23182 Arroyo Vista, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688, United States