When covid came on to the world scene, it opened my eyes to many things that I had been clueless about. To say it has been eye opening would be an understatement of the century! Ha! Talk about scales falling off of your eyes! I'm confident most of you would agree this has been a very long and grueling almost 2 years....and it only seems to be getting worse. Most people have lost faith in something along the way. Perhaps you have lost faith in the government...our judicial system, our voting system, our healthcare system, the school system, or the media, just to name a few. But in all of this disillusion in almost all aspects of our lives, have we lost our faith in God during these trying times?
As we watch what's going on around us, and as we go through these various trials do we wonder where God is? Are we frustrated or disappointed because it seems like God is delaying? Are we feeling like all of our prayers are going unheard? It may feel that way, but be assured, God's timing is perfect, he is never late, and he hears all of the prayers of his children. God see's the whole picture, and he see's things we cannot see. While we wait, with what may seem like a delay to us, it's actually a perfect opportunity for us to prove to God what were made of.
1 Peter 1:6,7 says, "In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of our faith-of greater worth that gold, which perishes even though refined by fire-may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed." God will use circumstances and trials to test our faith, and at the same time when going through difficult times, we can use them as a opportunity to develop and deepen our faith.
The dictionary defines faith as the complete trust or confidence in someone or something. The bible gives a definition of faith as well, "Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see."-Hebrews 11:1 God's word goes on to say, "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for anyone who approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him."-Hebrews 11:6 So faith is crucial to our salvation, because it is impossible to please God without it.
It's important to keep in mind that when we go through trials and suffering, there are benefits, even though it may not seem like it at the time. "...suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope."-Romans 5:3-4 Trials teach us to trust in God, and by trusting in God, it creates a bond with him. Our difficulties not only shapes our character, but it can actually strengthen our relationship with God.
I can honestly say, it has been my personal experience, that ever since I began to really lean into God, that is when my worry subsided, and I developed a true sense of peace, despite the absolute chaos going on around us. Am I exhausted, tired, and over it? Am I anxious for justice and for every lie to be revealed? YES! But I do know that God's timetable is different than mine, and he knows all things and sees all things, therefore I trust his judgment and timing 1,000%! We are told in 2 Corinthians 5:7, that we need to "Walk by faith."
At times that can be extremely difficult. Especially if your someone who is being personally affected by what is going on around us. Maybe your children are being forced to wear masks at school, perhaps you have lost your job, or your uncertain if you will even have a job because of the mandatory vaccine mandate. Very real talk on the news about countries requiring vaccination cards, and those who have completely lost their freedoms in other countries where they were once free. This is all very shocking, and now more than ever we need to strengthen our faith, encourage one another and lean into God. James 5:16 say to "....pray for one another."
When we look at examples in God's word that he gave us to encourage us, we see many who were faced with incredibly scary and hard circumstances, yet their faith in God is what got them through. Think of Abraham...it was by his faith that he was willing to sacrifice his one and only son to God. Of course God did not have him follow through with it, but it was because Abraham was righteous and faithful to him, that God called him his "friend." -2 Chronicles 20:7 Imagine that for a moment. Faith so strong that it pleased God to the point that he would have it recorded in his word, that he considered you to be his friend!
Think of the faith of the three young Hebrew men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who were told to bow down and worship King Nebuchadnezzar's image. They refused to worship anyone but God, and so they were thrown into the fire. To the King's surprise, not only were they unharmed, but God sent an angel who appeared walking around in the fiery furnace with them. When they came out of the fire, not a hair on their heads were harmed and their clothes didn't even smell like smoke.-see Daniel 3:16-28
Consider Daniel's faith when he was thrown into the lions pit, he was saved by God when he shut the mouths of the lions, and those who tricked the King to throw Daniel into the lion's den were themselves eaten by these very lions.-see Daniel 6:1-28
Think about Noah. The bible says that the end days would be just like in the days of Noah. "But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be." It took a lot of faith on Noah's part to trust God and obey him when he told Noah to build the ark, to fill it with two animals of every kind and to fill it for food for all of them. Prior to the flood it had never rained. Imagine the mocking and the things Noah and his family must have gone through before it started to actually rain.-See Genesis 6:1-22
These of course are just a few of the faithful ones who are recorded for us as outstanding examples of faith in extremely difficult circumstances. Its hard to know exactly how things are going to play out and when. We do have God's word though that tells us what is coming. Now is the time to pray for one another, to build each other up. Now is the time to bolster our faith, to draw close to God, and to show him exactly what were made of. Its defiantly going to be biblical!! Now is the time to "Wait on the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord."-Psalms 27:14 Stay strong my friends, were not in this alone...we have each other, but most importantly, we have our heavenly Father who loves us dearly, and is there to comfort us.
Peace & Joy!
~Lisa
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