In Times of Trouble

Seen in a restaurant was a sign with the "thought for the day:" It read: Every setback, is a setup, for a comeback.

We all know of someone who is going through extreme pain and discouragement at the present time. Just as many if not all of us have gone through before, or maybe going through right now. Certainly not all the same kind of problem, but to each of us, our own problem has been devastating.

How do we respond? John Kennedy stated in his inaugural address, “Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.” Maybe instead of asking, “God, why are putting me through this?” We should ask, “God, what do you want me to learn from this?”

Perhaps he is trying to teach us all:

About a stronger relationship with Jesus...
Or a new certainty that He is alive and personal...
Or just as important, that He does watch, he cares, and he hears and responds to our cries at times of deepest need.

Maybe the most important discovery is that in our greatest time of need, we don’t need a solution to our pain, we need a greater intimacy with Jesus.

I think God is trying to teach two important things in our troubled times. First, trusting Jesus enables us to endure the worst life can throw at us, because we know that at the end of the road, all will be well.

Jeremiah wrote:

Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. He 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)

Those roots that are sent out into the stream. That is our connection to the source of power. It is our conduit for prayers. And just as many of us already know, prayer works!

Jesus is with us in sickness, grief, fear, aging, terrorist attacks, the collapse of a relationship or a career, threats to our financial security... and in times like these.

And his presence is enough!! Experiencing the presence of Jesus is like plugging that extension cord into the wall socket. We receive power.

Secondly, learning to trust is a journey. I remember a few years ago when I was in seminary, I hit the proverbial brick wall as far as school was concerned. Even though I knew I had to go on, I just didn’t have the desire to do it. It was through the prayers and encouragement of my Christian friends that I realized that Jesus is the only answer for hopelessness and despair. I was to trust at the depth where I could say: Lord, I belong to you...I know you will never leave me nor forsake me.

Trusting God takes time. Trusting Jesus must begin at the beginning. Trust for every other need begins by trusting our Savior's forgiving grace...His outrageous love.

Once we have experienced our Savior's forgiving grace, then we can surrender control over other parts of our lives. The problem is that we are not aware of our dependence, and of the availability of the power of Jesus. We carry responsibilities we were never meant to carry.

Then we discover that our Lord hears, responds, and catches us. As we grow in intimacy with Jesus, these words from Isaiah become our personal promise: You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is focused on you, because he trusts in you. (Isaiah. 26:3)

In the Psalms we read:

When I am afraid, I will trust in you... I trust; I will not be afraid. (Psalm 56:3-4)

Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you...as for me I trust in you. (Psalm 55:22-23)

Today we are all invited to believe this promise...and take whatever might be causing us fear or stress and right now cast your burden upon the Lord. Give responsibility for the solution to your problems to God. You and I serve a Christ who is Almighty, who can move mountains.

Let's trust Him and watch Him respond.

Dwayne Collins, MA, LPC

Email: Heart Change Counseling

Phone: 469-261-5123