Trusting God
Jennifer Mahone
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
Ever have one of those days that just seems to fall in the category of “Ugh!”? Let me start with an example. You wake up and you don’t quite understand what going on inside of you. Your nose is running but stuffy all at the same time (how does that even happen?), your throat is on fire, head is splitting, stomachs just not right, then you step outside for the first time in the morning and there’s that refreshing breeze that you didn’t quite expect. Hmmmm…maybe today will be alright after all 🙂 Then the rain comes! Where did that come from?! Its wet and yucky…let me not remind you that you already feel bad. So you can’t breathe, your tired and life is the pits! Really…its all falling to shambles. There is nothing left to do but sulk in this awful day. Your life has officially fallen apart and all because you woke up with a runny nose! What happened?
Obviously this was the kind of morning I had but needless to say, my day did not fall apart and my life is still intact 🙂 But isn’t it funny how we allow the things we can not control to control our complete day? We choose to allow that little illness, or setback to do just that to our entire day…Set it back. I once had a friend who did just that. She seemed to surround herself with the negatives of her day and soon enough (probably before the sun could even attempt to rise) her day was predetermined by her negative thoughts of what could possibly get worse. On the other hand, I have this amazing friend who does not deny the fact that life does have its ups and downs but somehow (with Gods grace and strength) she always sees that silver lining; the sunshine peeking through the clouds; the calm after the storm.
Why is it that most of the time we can relate to the woman who only saw the bad in life? She never stood on spiritual lookout for the hidden treasures; the blessings of God. She always anticipated the worst. Life is not perfect but we must have the faith to look beyond our troubles and see that the sun is still there, its just temporarily out of sight. I am reminded of the things God showed me in my previous posts. He showed how the rain came to wash away that which did not belong. Come to think of it, too much sunlight and not enough cover would eventually cause the flowers to wilt and dry up. God knows exactly what we need and when we need it. God knew that I needed rest today, and because I rested, my entire family was able to rest. God knew we needed to slow down and be still for a moment.
I remember a phrase a pastor once taught us…”Everything in our life is either God sent or God used. If He didn’t send it, He will use it.” It is so true too. I can ‘t even begin to tell you about the many times we have encountered a struggle, but because we endured and overcame we can say that we are much stronger today than before the struggle even hit. If we never went through anything in life how would we be able to encourage others that they can overcome if they just believe and trust God to see them through. The struggles we endure build endurance…the ability to withstand hardship or adversity. The struggles may never quit coming to try and take us out or press us down but one thing for sure is that as we endure and overcome, each new struggle becomes easier to get through because our spiritual endurance has been increased and strengthened.
In times of trouble I am always reminded of King David. If there is anyone in the bible that I admire for their perseverence in overcoming it is him. David was not perfect, he made mistakes, he doubted at times and many times he most likely could have thrown in the towel, but through his adversity he always remembered where his strength came from. This is only a small example of the desperation and the constant faith that he had in God…
Psalm 13
“How long Lord? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and day after day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me?
Look on me and answer, Lord my God.
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death,
and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”
and my foes will rejoice when I fall.
But I trust in your unfailing love;
My heart rejoices in your salvation.
I will sing the Lord’s praise,
for He has been good to me.”
If it weren’t for David’s “but” (no pun intended) lol…where would he be. Yes he struggled, yes he doubted…who doesn’t in the midst of a trial?
“BUT” he remembered the Lord. Through the struggle he was reminded of all the things God had already done for him. His faith was restored! He saw the silver lining…that ray of hope peeking from beyond the clouds. My heart desires to encourage you to keep the faith. When the world around you crumbles, look at the great things God has already done and have faith that He will pick up the pieces and assemble them where they need to be.
Be encouraged!
Jennifer