I’m in the process of learning a lesson that’s crucial to the Christian life: I’m learning to have faith. Having faith is one of the most difficult things a believer can do, even though it seems like an easy task. After all, it’s simply believing what God says and trusting His plans instead of our own—even when your agenda seems to make more sense or when your plans seem to have more order or when your thoughts seem better and “righter” than His.
But that’s where doubt—wondering if God’s plan is the best thing for us—becomes an obstacle to faith. Doubt is (essentially) asking if He knows what He’s doing (which seems silly when I actually write it down, but it happens frequently).
We know the truth in our heads—our stuffy little Christianese-filled minds. But do we know it in our hearts?
Mary did.
“And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.” (Luke 1:45 NASB)
Here, Elizabeth is speaking to her cousin, Mary. Of all the people who should have trouble believing something, it was Mary. It was physically impossible for her to have a baby, let alone the King of Kings. How could such a thing be?
Looking at them, Jesus said, “With people it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.” (Mark 10:27 NASB)
Only with God. Only with His unexplainably great power and knowledge.
Like me, you’ve probably heard over and over that we can’t always understand how God works. Trying to make us feel better, people say, “God knows what He’s doing. You just have to trust Him.”
That’s extremely hard to hear when you’re in the bottom of a dark, lonely hole.
Maybe you’re battling an illness, watching a loved one suffer, or having relationship conflicts. I don’t know what you’re going through right now, but I can tell you this: The hole you seem to be stuck in will only feel darker if you sit there alone and sulk. When you decide to believe the God with unexplainably great power and knowledge, at least there’s a chance to get out of the hole and see the light again.
And by the way, belief is a choice. You have to make a decision to trust God. It’s definitely not going to come naturally.
When life feels like a dark, bottomless pit, our only hope of seeing even a glimmer of light is to cling to the only One who is the Light.
No other person or thing is the light. That prestigious college, fancy job title, adoring spouse, or beautiful house won’t be with you forever. It won’t be a life preserver in the storm or a safety net for a fall.
I know that because I’ve sought many other flickering sources of light. I’ve tried to find happiness in things. I’ve put up idol after idol, believing I’d be satisfied once I reached my goals and fulfilled my plans. But my idols left me feeling empty. They didn’t shed light on the truth or protect me from sin. In fact, they did the opposite.
I agree that things and people can help you feel good about yourself. They can increase your self-esteem or make you feel loved for a time. But only for a time.
If we could simply trust what God says, life would be a lot easier. So that’s really the challenge in our lives: deciding what to do with what we know. Will we use the Truth as a weapon against Satan’s lies, as we’re commanded (Ephesians 6:17)? Or will we just let the Truth forever rest in our minds and instead gobble up the empty “truths” of this evil world?
Only you can decide.
Tizzie's Tidbits of Truth 