It's Not Supposed to Be This Way by Lysa TerKeurst

Week 9: Chapter 8 — Fighting for Your Faith

Read Chapter 8 of It's Not Supposed to Be This Way. Key passages: Ephesians 6:10–18; 1 Peter 5:8–9.

Lysa names something that seasons of deep pain can make easy to forget: we have an enemy, and one of his primary strategies is to use our suffering to produce doubt, isolation, and ultimately unbelief. This chapter is a call to fight.

Discussion Questions

7 questions

1.Lysa writes about the spiritual dimension of suffering — the way an enemy who hates us will use real pain as a weapon to pull us away from God. Does thinking about suffering in spiritual warfare terms feel helpful, threatening, or strange to you? Why?

2.She describes how the enemy doesn't have to create our pain from scratch — he simply has to whisper lies into it. What are the specific lies that tend to attach themselves to your particular kind of suffering? How do they sound in your own internal voice?

3.Ephesians 6 describes the armor of God — truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation, the Word of God. Lysa applies these not just to abstract spiritual warfare but to the daily grind of disappointment. Which piece of that armor feels most needed in your life right now, and why?

a.What does it look like to "put on" that piece of armor in a practical, daily way — not just as a metaphor?

b.Is there a piece of armor you habitually neglect?

4.She emphasizes the importance of being in God's Word specifically during painful seasons — not as a religious obligation but as a survival tool. How has Scripture functioned in your life during hard times? Has it felt like a weapon, a comfort, an obligation, or all three?

5.1 Peter 5:8–9 says to "resist" the enemy, "standing firm in the faith." What does resistance look like when you are exhausted? What does "standing firm" look like when you can barely stand at all?

+ 4 more questions in this week

Get all 78 questions across 11 weeks

Get Full Guide — $24.99

Closing Prayer

Full guide

Lord, we confess that we have sometimes laid down our faith like it was optional equipment rather than fighting for it like our lives depend on it. Forgive us for the times we have believed the enemy's whispers more than Your Word. Thank You that You have given us everything we need to stand. Dress us in truth today. When we are too tired to fight, fight for us — and remind us that You already have. Amen.

Week 8 View Full Guide Week 10

Get the Complete 11-Week Study Guide

All 78 discussion questions, weekly reading schedule, closing prayers, and a downloadable PDF for your group.

Get Your Guide — $24.99

All Weeks in This Guide

Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8 Week 9 Week 10 Week 11

More by Lysa TerKeurst