Keep the Faith During a Tough Season

"I keep my eyes always on the LORD.

With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”

Psalm 16:8

Whenever we are going through tough situations in life, the quickest and the most automatic response is to want to throw in the towel and point a finger at God, demanding how he could allow bad things to happen to his children. We ask why, despite us being called blessed and favored by the Lord, we still have to go through heartaches and troubles.

The Promise No One Wants

The thing is, when we are clouded by the size of our problems, we forget that trials and troubles are also among the many promises that Jesus gave us. In John chapter 16 verse 33 Jesus says, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Jesus is basically telling us that being a child of God is no pass from trial and hardship. Why? Imagine a baby, growing up, learning new things, discovering the world. When he or she stumbles, scrapes a knee, falls down, the parent of course feels bad and rescues the child right away, heals the wounds and wipes the child’s tears. But being a parent does not mean not allowing a child to experience difficulty, because you know that it is through these trying moments that the child can become a stronger individual, ready to face life as it really is.

It is the same way that the Lord deals with us. He allows us as much hardship as he is able to see us through, because he also promised that when we go through the fire, when we go through the depths, he is with us. No matter how dark the pit, we are in, we are not alone, because God himself promised that he will never leave nor forsake us.

Keep Your Eyes On Jesus

Have you ever wondered how some people, despite the tremendous pain or suffering that they are going through, can still praise the Lord and say that God is good?

As Christians, we have that unhindered, intimate access to God, who is the source of all hope, all peace, and all joy. When we look to him despite the messes in our lives, our perspectives change, and we no longer see our problems as mountains, but merely pebbles in comparison with the power, mercy, and goodness of God.

God also promised that his will for us is always good, pleasing and perfect, so no matter where we are right now, no matter what circumstances surround us, his plan for us remain beautiful, and his hand is always at work to finish what he has started in us.

If God is for us, who can be against us? We may be “hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. (2 Corinthians 4:8-9)". In Christ, we always have hope.

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