Our Heart In Hardship

Can contentment and deliverance be discovered amidst trials and struggles?

For almost 40 years, Man in the Mirror has heard from men facing financial, emotional, marital, and spiritual struggles, especially during or after milestone events in our country, such as 9-11, the Great Recession, and COVID. In 2001, Patrick Morley offered these words of encouragement for all facing hardship.

For five months, I have worried and wrestled over finances. And then, things changed. No, not my circumstances. I changed. More accurately, God changed my heart so I could trust Him in the middle of it all. Then, His peace flooded my heart, soul, and mind. The joy was supernatural.

God will rarely change our circumstances or merely give us what we want so that we can have peace. Instead, He tends to go the opposite way. He increases the heat of the fire until we can say, like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, “God will rescue me. But even if He does not, I will worship no other God.” (Daniel 3:16-25)

God’s way is to change our hearts. Then, when we are content “in” our circumstances, He may deliver us “from” our circumstances.

If you are in the middle of an internal or external battle, do not dwell on God delivering you from it. Instead, focus on how He can deliver you in it.

Motivated by his own search for meaning, purpose, and a deeper relationship with God, Patrick Marley started a weekly Bible study in a bar with a handful of guys in 1986—a study that now reaches thousands of men around the world every week. Inspired and challenged by those studies and conversations, he wrote The Man in the Mirror, named one of the 100 most influential books of the 20th century. The deep hunger he saw in men for a more authentic life led him to start Man in the Mirror—a global men’s ministry impacting thousands of churches and millions of men. Widely regarded as a leading authority on men’s issues, Patrick has written 22 books and more than 750 articles—all focused on helping men solve their most compelling problems. His books have been translated into numerous languages and printed in 48 countries. “The ministry of Man in the Mirror exists,” says Patrick Morley, “in answer to the prayers of all those wives, mothers, and grandmothers who have for decades been praying for the men in their lives.” Patrick graduated from the University of Central Florida, earned a PhD in management, completed postgraduate studies at Harvard Business School and Oxford University, and graduated from Reformed Theological Seminary. He and his wife live in Winter Park, Florida. They have two married children and five grandchildren.

Photo by Man In The Mirror