Faith in Troubled Times

One of the greatest challenge in Christian life is to trust God especially in troubled times. We say we trust God, but we still believe in our human instinct to take many actions based on what we think is right, I have had this experience myself, I am sure many have had this experience.

So, what is Faith in Jesus, what is the definition of Faith according to Bible?

'Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. ' Hebrews 11:1

Read this slowly and if you see the end definition of Faith “assurance about what we do not see “, So how can we trust or place our hope in something which we do not see?

How do you Trust without Seeing?

We humans must always need to see something to believe it or if we must trust someone, we need to have an experience to trust someone. When we buy online or in store, we read the reviews / ratings of things we buy before we buy the thing, we also see how many people have rated well, if it’s only a few our trust factor is low, some go to the extent of seeing pictures / videos before we do anything to be 200% sure what you do is correct. I am sure many of you can relate to what I am telling.

Deceptions

• When it comes to Trusting God, how can you do that without seeing how God will make it work? that’s the challenge we all have.

• Satan uses this tool called “Deception”, even though our heart says, I trust and have faith in God’s word, but still he continues to challenge you in your heart to say, “you have not seen it work, so how do you believe?”. Whereas the word of God says the opposite to what we practice “faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see”

• Satan uses our daily experiences / mistrust with humans and equates our trust in God to be the same. We apply the Faith in humans and God in the same manner. That’s the trick of Satan to make us believe that it’s the same. Deception starts from your heart to make you believe that God is not doing this, it’s on your own strength you do this. 'The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? ' Jeremiah 17:9

• The core fundamental issue – First you need to have faith that Jesus Christ is God, he died for our sins, and he is the God of heaven and earth. Without this faith in Jesus, we cannot get this “trust without seeing”, you will get that experience only when you are righteous with God, Paul explains it well 'This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, ' Romans 3:22

• Say you attend an interview and succeed, You may come back to argue it’s all my ability / experience I did get the Job, where did God help here ? what you are missing is, there is a God who gave you the mercy to be shortlisted for the Job, mercy to attend the interview (you could have got something bad and missed the interview), mercy for the interviewer to ask you the questions you know, without his grace and mercy there is nothing you can do. The word says every good thing comes from God 'Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. ' James 1:17 , Satan tricks to make you believe that all that’s happening because of your human Strength and not from God

Effects of human strength

So, we are deceived to believe that all that happens is only because of our human strengths, Jeremiah gives a view of this

'This is what the Lord says: “Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord . That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes. They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives. ' Jeremiah 17:5-6

Few things we should know when we trust in our human strengths

1. We are cursed - “Cursed is the one who trusts in man” We are cursed by God when we depend on our Strength.

2. We are bush growing in wasteland – We are a bush in God’s eyes, it can grow further to a tree, because we depend on our human strength and he compares this Bush to be in a waste land where it fails its prosperity (God’s plans to prosper), it’s the sole reason why we fail without God’s help “who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord . That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes”

3. Desert / Salt Land – He compares the person to live in a salt land where no one lives, it’s a desert where there is nothing. “They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives.” Nothing grows in a salt land, it’s good for nothing that’s how we are when we depend on our own.

How to Trust God in Troubled times?

Faith is to place 100% trust in God and believing that he is in control, you will have this experience of “confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Only when you are righteous with God.

But when we walk with God closely, we are challenged with Faith constantly in this Spiritual maturity, so what Actions can you take to guard the faith in Jesus ?

1. Watch Items from Satan

Satan roams around ways to trick us and make us get away from Faith, the tools he uses is

1. Fear

• Satan uses fear as strong tool to make us afraid of the situation, Fear makes us anxious / worried and takes us away from the faith in God and trust in our human strengths.

• Remember when you are God’s child, no one can touch you or harm you. God treats his children as an apple of eye 'For this is what the Lord Almighty says: “After the Glorious One has sent me against the nations that have plundered you—for whoever touches you touches the apple of his eye— Zechariah 2:8, Try touching apple of eye, God will protect you like the eye lid.

• Satan may make you believe it’s going to come and attack you etc, remember if he touches you he touches God’s eyes.

2. Deceptions

• We read Satan deceives us with his lies he makes us believe its true - He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. John 8:44

• When you walk close to God, we get Promises from Satan as well he will tell many promises of human desires to deceive us as its from God, Pray to God to help you discern what’s from God and what’s from Satan.

• Remember, all the children of God go thru this, it’s not unique that you alone are going thru this situation. God’s promise is true 'Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. ‘ 1 Peter 5:9-10

2. Hope and trust in God

You must trust in the Lord to taste his actions to (believe in the) “hope” that he will do it. In situation of everyday life, you expect some of the outcome works in favour or sometimes the outcomes come opposite to what you want, If it goes opposite to what you want, God will tell you why he did not give what you asked, also it shows what bad things could have come if it’s gone your way.

Jeremiah explains what happens when we put our trust in God

'“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord , whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” ' Jeremiah 17:7-8

Few things we should know when we trust in God

1. We are blessed by God – “blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord , whose confidence is in him”

2. Continue to Prosper – We will continue to prosper like the tree where it sends its roots to Stream “They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream”

3. You will not fear – you will not fear when struggles comes your way or fear the threats of Satan “It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green.”

4. No Worry / Anxiety can take over – No worry or anxiety can take over you “It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”, you continue to bear the fruit of God when you depend on him.

3. Cling to the Word / promise from God

God’s word Bible is the guide for you in when you’re in trouble, stick to him closer than how you would normally be, think of a new-born baby how it clings to its mother for everything, likewise stick to Jesus, read the Bible / mediate and see what God is talking to you on your situation.

He will give you word on his directions in your situation, the Bible has guidance to all the situations of life no matter what profession you work or what work you do or what position you hold to.

Read the word, God is faithful to his promise

'so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. ' Isaiah 55:11

When you read the word of God and if he gives a promise he will be true to his promise. No one in the world can give that type of assurance like how God can give, See the promise.

'He remembers his covenant forever, the promise he made, for a thousand generations, ' 1 Chronicles 16:15

4. Prayer

The word of God says - 'Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. ' James 5:13

Prayer is one of the most powerful tools we have against Satan, pray with your problems / challenges, Pray about the situation. Be expressive to God to tell you what you are facing, the inner feelings you are facing on the situation and surrender to ask him for help

Don’t do general prayer on your situation, be specific on your prayer, if you are having issues on with a person, tell the name of person and pray. As a child of God, he gives you that power to ask like that, not that God does not know the name or your challenges, he wants us to tell him and be intimate in our asks so that he will come and help us.

Jesus explains on how he rewards what we ask in our prayers, reminder of his promise

1. 'For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” ' 1 Peter 3:12

2. ' “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! ' Matthew 7:9-11

3. 'If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” ' Matthew 21:22

5. Obeying his Promise

• You must obey what you read and what God asks you to do, God expects us to walk and obey him. Without obeying to God’s word, you give room to deception for Satan to take over you, see what Paul says 'Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ' James 1:22

• Faith “assurance about what we do not see “cannot work without actions of obeying to God’s command, Faith will become futile. You cannot say I trust in God and do what your heart desires. 'In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. ' James 2:17

• God tests if our actions are genuine before he comes to our help. We cannot have an attitude “I will try once God’s plan and if I face struggles I will switch to my own plan” the Actions from us must be steadfast irrespective of the outcome we face '“I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve.” Jeremiah 17:10

Our God is a Zealous God, he will honour and take care of his children, the troubles of life when we are God’s children is to make us grow spiritually, God does not enjoy when we suffer, he wants us to become stronger in spiritual sense so he allows this trials and temptations to us so that we may glorify him after we come out of the situation, Paul explains it well

'In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. ' 1 Peter 1:6-7

Remember when you go thru trails, its only for a little while, you are getting refined as Gold, you are allowed to go thru to Glorify Jesus for his marvellous works in you.