The Choice We Have When Life Gets Hard

Life is hard. That’s not news to anyone who has been on this planet for more than a week.

But—and this is critical to remember—God is good. His goodness is not rated by what happens to you or me, or any group of people. It’s an intrinsic part of who He is, just like His faithfulness or omnipotence.

We sing phrases like “God is good and His love endures forever” in familiar songs, but those aren’t simply nice lyrics. They represent truth that flows directly from the pages of scripture. (See Psalm 100:5, for starters.)

It can be difficult, though, to reconcile the fact that God is good with what we see going on all around us—when waves of grief, pain and discouragement regularly arrive at our own front doors and take up residence in our own hearts. Cover it all with a heavy layer of unmet expectations, and disillusionment is a short hop away.

We have a choice, in times like these.

We can blame God and other Christians, gradually (and perhaps unintentionally) walk away from our faith, engage in some kind of deconstruction/reconstruction process that involves fashioning a nicer, trendier, more culturally palatable sort of God in the image that we want Him to take.

Or we can lean into scripture, ask the hard questions (of ourselves and of God), admit that perhaps doubt is not the greatest virtue, find encouragement by reading the words of other believers who have kept the faith while walking through valleys deep and dark.

I’m a few decades past the first “hardest phase of my life.” Since then, I’ve endured seasons that were far more excruciating. At the risk of sounding overly pessimistic, I’m fully expecting there will be more to come in the future.

I wonder, sometimes, how I would have reacted if someone had shared all this with me 20 years ago—when I couldn’t fathom God’s big picture and all I wanted was for my current situation to be resolved.

I see now that mine wasn’t the only story affected by what was happening to me—that God’s purposes for me and my loved ones would extend much further than I could have ever imagined.

That’s life viewed in retrospect, though—a perspective we simply don’t have when we’re in the middle of the hard phase.

If I could go back to the year 2000 and have a candid heart-to-heart with my much-younger self, I honestly don’t know if it would make a bit of difference. There’s always a chance that it might encourage you, though. So here goes:

• Don’t assume that things are not turning out as you hoped because there’s something wrong with you, or because there is something wrong with God.

• Don’t assume that if you wait long enough, you’ll eventually get what you want.

• Don’t assume that this is the hardest thing you will ever go through in your life. (It might be, but likely it is not.)

• Don’t worry about what your current season of waiting is preparing you for—as in, constantly wondering what horrible thing is going to come along later that will make your present trial seem like it was at least sort of worthwhile. Instead, trust that God will strengthen you, equip you and see you through—now and later.

• If healing or deliverance doesn’t happen, don’t assume that God’s not in control. He’s sovereign, whether you acknowledge it or not, whether you like it or not, or whether He chooses to heal your or your loved one or not.

• Above all, remember this. Faith isn’t holding your breath and believing really hard that something good will happen. It’s trusting that God is good, that He loves you, and that He knows what you need, even if that good thing you so desperately want never happens.

♥ Lois

P.S. I’m linking up this week with #tellhisstory, InstaEncouragements, Recharge Wednesday, Let’s Have Coffee, Inspire Me Monday and Grace & Truth.