Where Is God in the Struggle?
By Cindi McMenamin
Bible Reading
“The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.
Do not forsake the work of your hands.” Psalm 138:8 (ESV)
“I don’t understand why God is allowing us to struggle like this,” a friend told me recently after she and her husband experienced a series of financial and relational challenges.
After four decades of ministry to women, I can tell you, without a doubt, that struggles are a part of life. You are not being discriminated against or punished by God when you experience difficulty, delay, disappointment, or loss. And if you know God, you don’t struggle alone. He’s there, ready to redeem your suffering and refine you through it, and He’s placed more people in your path than you realize who can help you through it.
Disappointment can make us feel so very lonely. So can loss or a setback or a series of frustrations. Just because life is full of struggles doesn’t make them any easier to navigate. But, oh the comfort of knowing there is a reason (whether you are privy to it this side of heaven or not) and there is help along the way.
In the early years of my marriage, it seemed like my husband and I had one situation after another in which we needed to trust God to get us through financially. One day, after I was briefing my husband on all that needed to happen for the bills to be paid that month so we wouldn’t go into credit card debt, Hugh said, rather casually, “If these faith tests are still happening because you haven’t yet learned to trust God with our finances, I sure wish you’d trust Him. I learned long ago that He will provide.”
His statement took me by surprise. And instead of feeling insulted that his remark implied I was the one who was worrying and he wasn’t, and that’s why the test was happening, I realized he was right. I did still worry about the finances. I did still have to talk it all through and see it all on paper to understand it would work out in order not to panic. I was still trying to control it all.
That day, I repented to God for still not trusting Him to provide, even though He had an excellent track record of providing for us in every way since the day we married.
“God, don’t let us go through this on account of my lack of faith,” I prayed, “Help me to rest in You when it comes to financial matters so we can get beyond this.”
As a result of that prayer, nothing changed for the next 20 years in terms of our financial situation being tight. But my anxiety level changed tremendously. God didn’t necessarily bring us more money, or give me more faith (you and I have all the faith we will ever need at the point of our salvation). What changed was my determination to trust God to be Who He promises He will be—our Provider, Sustainer, and Giver of every good and perfect gift under heaven (James 1:17). I started living what I professed to believe.
Have we still faced financial concerns? Of course. But they are no longer concerns that we won’t have what we need. Rather, our concern is that we will fail to manage well what God has given us. Our concern is that we might overlook the needs of others whom God clearly brings our way. But mostly, our concern is that we will—even if for a moment—fail to trust the One who has a million times over proven that He is trustworthy in every area of our lives.
As you and I honor God with our time, talents, and treasure, He honors us as well, by faithfully providing all we have ever needed, and so much more simply because He is the God who loves to bless.
Faith tests grow us into people who take God at His Word—people who experience peace rather than panic, and people who trust rather than fret or complain.
Whether it’s a financial difficulty, a relationship struggle, a health problem, or an overall fear of the future, God is the One who can work it out, redeem it into something good, and grow us through the struggle.
Intersecting Faith & Life:
God knows all about what you struggle with. He knows. He’s in control. He has His reasons for allowing what He does. And most of the time that reason is because He wants us to trust Him like a child instinctively and unswervingly trusts the protective care of his loving mother or father. When we get a glimpse of God’s greater purposes for us, or just believe He has a plan that is far bigger than ours, we can trust His goodness, even if we can’t yet see it.
When you and I realize we can’t control our lives, we can relax into His control and realize every circumstance—even this disappointment or loneliness you’re feeling today—is in His hands and He is allowing it to show you a new side of Himself, and bring you into a closer relationship with Him.
Further Reading:
Psalm 121
For more on trusting God in your struggles, see Cindi’s newest book, The New Loneliness: Nurturing Meaningful Connections When You Feel Isolated.
Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/Riccardo Mion
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