Address your biggest questions about life and faith with guidance from Max Lucado. For 25 years men and women have turned to Max Lucado for answers, encouragement, and insight into every facet of their lives. Together with Max they’ve journeyed through life’s most exciting and challenging times―births, deaths, financial ups and downs, spiritual quests, and relational adventures. And Max has become a trusted advisor, pastor, and friend in times of need. Now, more than ever, Max’s wisdom is needed to help readers navigate the tumults of every-day life. In the Max on Life DVD-based study, Max addresses questions about the role of prayer, the purpose of pain, and the reason for our ultimate hope. He responds to the day-to-day questions―parenting quandaries, difficult relationships―as well as to the profound: Is God really listening? Designed as a companion to the DVD, and perfect for study for both new and mature believers, this participant's guide can be used for journaling or as a prompt for open-hearted discussions with your small group. Features: Daily readings - Questions for personal reflection and group discussion Since entering the ministry in 1978, Max Lucado has served churches in Miami, Florida; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and San Antonio, Texas. He currently serves as the teaching minister of Oak Hills Church in San Antonio. He is the recipient of the 2021 ECPA Pinnacle Award for his outstanding contribution to the publishing industry and society at large. He is America's bestselling inspirational author with more than 150 million products in print. Visit his website at MaxLucado.com Facebook.com/MaxLucado Instagram.com/MaxLucado X.com/MaxLucado Youtube.com/MaxLucadoOfficial The Max Lucado Encouraging Word Podcast Max on Life Participant's Guide By Max Lucado Thomas Nelson Copyright © 2011 Max Lucado All right reserved. ISBN: 978-1-4185-4755-4 Contents Introduction.............................9How this Study Works.....................10Week One: Hurt...........................11Week Two: Him/Her........................35Week Three: Home.........................61Week Four: Hereafter.....................87Special Thanks...........................110 Chapter One WEEK 1 * Hurt * * Introduction * Why do we suffer? It's probably the toughest question we have to face as believers. And it's not just some theoretical quandary for scholars to bat around, but something that touches our lives deeply. If we believe in a God of love and power, why can't God use his power to keep bad things from happening to us? It's a complaint as old as Job. We've all gone through tough times, and we've all asked the question: "Why me?" It's hard enough to deal with calamity but it makes it even worse when we don't understand why it's happening. In today's video, Max Lucado explores these tough questions. A lesson like this won't provide all the answers, but it might lead us into a tighter embrace with God. * Icebreaker * What do you do in your daily work? What sort of preparation have you gone through to do that? Note that "daily work" involves whatever someone spends most of the day doing. For a student, it's school. For a homemaker, it's the home, or the family. Preparation can be anything—education, past experience, a personality trait, or a lucky break. * Video Notes * _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ * After the Video * We saw two very different real-life stories in the video, though both involved a great deal of personal pain. Rob was accused of something and dismissed from his job, putting his family in a very difficult financial situation. How would you feel in a situation like that? Max zeroed in on the issues of anger and hurt. He suggested three things to do in situations like that. 1. Change your focus. It's easy to say, "Let God be your focus," but how can you do that? 2. Discover why a person behaves that way (their past). Are we making excuses for a person when we try to understand their past? 3. Pray for the person who hurt you. Have you ever prayed that good would come to a person who hurt you? What happened? Jennifer was struck by a life-altering disease, and she shared her reactions in brutally honest ways. She mentioned some "cutting things, just insensitive things, Bible verses" that Christians said to her. "It's such a strange thing that scripture can hurt sometimes." Have you ever been hurt by people who were trying to comfort you? Is there anything you could say to Rob, Jennifer or someone like them that would help? Read 2 Corinthians 4:8–10. The apostle Paul is writing from his own experience as a missionary. In what way does Paul "carry around ... the death of Jesus"? Could we say the same thing about ourselves? How is the "li