Trust In God
OPENING PRAYER:
God, bring me clarity today as I reflect on your Word. Help me to see the areas in my life where I can trust you more fully.
“I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “the Lord is my portion; therefore, I will wait for him.” The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” Lamentations 3:19-26
REFLECT:
There was a time in my life where I was really struggling in a relationship. This relationship caused me so much stress and anxiety. I remember specifically crying out to God and asking him to fix this broken relationship. At the time, the situation then seemed to get worse, and I didn’t understand why God would not fix this broken and stressful relationship. I didn’t want to give up, but it seemed like everything was getting worse instead of better.
Looking back, God was working everything out in his own perfect way. God wasn’t fixing the relationship the way I wanted but he was breaking it down so that it could be rebuilt in a stronger way. At the time, it looked like God was saying no to what I wanted, but what he was really telling me to do was to wait on his perfect timing.
Sometimes we have struggles or anxieties that seem impossible in the moment. We don’t understand why God is letting us experience this worry, stress and pain. It is hard to believe that God is with us, but God is always there. We may not always understand but we can trust that God’s plan is better than our own. Author Charles Spurgeon once said, “I have learned to kiss the wave that slams me into the Rock of Ages.” This means we can embrace the struggle or at least persevere through it because we know that this struggle will bring us closer to who God wants us to be. God never promised a life without difficulty, but he did promise to be with us always.
APPLY:
We can overcome anxiety by knowing that God will come and help us. Read Psalm 103 today. Let the nature of God sit with you and let the goodness of God color how you view the anxieties you are facing.
CLOSING PRAYER:
God, you love me more than I can even fathom. Help me to remember that even though I may be going through something difficult, I can trust in your love.
WORSHIP: