Trusting God in Challenging CircumstancesSýnishorn

Trials Display God’s Glory

The temptation during trials might be to despair and wonder why we have to suffer while it appears others do not. We may even be tempted to rage against God and cast blame on Him for allowing us to suffer so harshly for so long. This is when we must remember that God never promised us a life of safety and comfort but a life of transformation. We often become so committed to avoiding pain of any kind in our lives that we lose sight of its fundamental function: to allow God’s works to be displayed. 

When we endure trials on the scale of the global pandemic, we must resist the temptation to play the blame game. These lines of thinking are natural and reactive and usually cannot be avoided in the midst of such calamity. Anytime something goes wrong or we suffer a loss, we’re likely to wonder why. Jesus’ disciples even posed this question once when they encountered a man who had been blind since birth: 

“Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

“Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

After saying this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.

—John 9:2–7, NIV

Our trials can become opportunities for God’s light to shine through the cracks of our brokenness. God’s glory pours forth into the hard, raw places of our lives and provides a poultice to soothe our wounds and restore our hope. Out of the muddy mess of dirt and saliva Jesus reveals the power to heal and cleanse. Rather than blame this man’s sin or his parents or God for making him blind, Jesus gave this man more than just the gift of sight; he became a living testament to the way God turns trials into triumphs. 

If we want to move beyond surviving to thriving, we must be willing to see by faith rather than by the sensory data viewed by our human eyes. We must allow our gritty circumstances to become the raw material for the masterpiece God wants to shape so that we can serve as His holy vessel. Rather than seeking to escape our pain, we can allow it to redirect our attention to a greater opportunity to trust God with every aspect of our being. 

God wants you to know He has not forgotten you and your needs. Your Creator has carried you through the unimaginable trials of recent times in order to strengthen you, empower you and redirect your attention to what matters most.