“May your compassion come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need”(Psalm 79:8). 

It’s a prayer that I’ve often prayed over the past two decades of trials. As the waves of tribulation seemed to relentlessly beat upon me and my family, it’s a prayer that has also been riddled with doubts over God’s apparent silence to our pleas for help at times. As the years have gone by and the circumstances grew more dire, it’s been easy to lose heart.

As a result, it’s been a full on fight for faith. A fight against the taunts that God isn’t who he says he is. The whispers that I must be too sinful, too faithless, or too broken to receive God’s grace, blessing, or compassion. The temptation to just stop praying, stop asking, and stop expecting him to answer.

I imagine I’m not the only believer who has faced these taunts in long seasons of layered suffering. It’s these very seasons that force us to examine what beliefs we’ve set our feet upon. And often, those beliefs are mixed with what God has promised and how we actually interpret those promises.

I don’t know about you, but I read the promises of Scripture and naturally interpret how they should play out in my specific circumstances. Inevitably, when God acts outside the bounds of those expectations, the doubts, hurt, confusion, and questions aren’t far behind.

There’s a pervasive belief that subtly infiltrates my thought life. One that, deep down, still believes God would keep me from harm and rescue me from pain if he truly loved me. If he’s truly in control, and a good, loving Father, why does he so often act contrary to our desires? 

In our human understanding, that’s how we think love should work. If my child is in danger, I would do whatever I could to rescue him or protect him from it. If I were to sit idly by and do nothing, I certainly wouldn’t be a very good and loving parent. But I’ve learned that I too often come to conclusions about who God is by interpreting a circumstance through the limited understanding of my humanity. It’s like the man who sees the cocoon of a butterfly and believes the most loving thing to do is to free the butterfly, yet in reality, freeing it from the painful struggle that’s purposed to strengthen it’s wings would cripple it from being strong enough to fly and living as it was intended to.

What we see with our eyes is one dimensional. God sees all-dimensional.

Instead of equating his goodness with what he protects or rescues us from, you and I have to bring our limited human perspective to rest in the belief that his goodness is found in his strength, purposes, and presence in those trials—rather than the removal of them. Instead of freeing us from the cocoon, Jesus climbs in it with us and gives us the strength to struggle and persevere our way through until we are shaped into the beauty of his character and are strong enough to be prepared and equipped to display his glory against the backdrop of a dark world.

“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.”

1 Peter 4:12-13

Friend, you may be facing something unimaginable and something very few can enter into. But Jesus promises to enter that place with you to give you the strength to endure, to melt away the impurities and dross in your life, to expose false beliefs and solidify true ones, and to bring about his eternal purposes. Like me, you may not feel it or see it in the moment. But neither has any other saint from of old. You and I are in good company as our faith muscles are broken down in order to grow in us a greater strength and endurance to fly against the shifting winds of this world.

May the Lord help us press on in the confident hope that this isn’t the end of the story. Although the enemy may taunt with the doubts that God is indifferent, uncaring, or absent, trust that God is actually at work in ways that you just can’t yet see. As you struggle, writhe, and long to be free from the difficulty, God is surely at work, creating something beautiful and lasting in you. For he cannot be unfaithful.

Home is around the corner,

Sarah

RELEASING TODAY…

Jesus Will Meet You There Video Series

On Doubt with Laura Wifler

For more on the topic of doubt, I’m excited to share the first of six conversations with men and women I greatly admire. Each video interview coincides with one section of the book, Jesus Will Meet You There. Conversations coming soon with Tim Challies, Brad Hambrick, Katie Blackburn, Jared Wilson, Vaneetha Rendall Risner, and a special surprise guest. 

Today’s conversation is with Laura Wifler (best selling author of Risen Motherhood), and is centered on the topic of doubt. You can watch or listen that conversation HERE. 

Here’s a sneak peak: