Many among us have been afflicted, entrapped in cycles of stagnation, and sometimes caught up in unutterable circumstances. Yet we do have Christ and claim He reigns. Does God truly reign given your uncertainties?
Here is what to do when you find yourself in a desolate place
There is a time for laughing and there is a time for weeping. As there is a time for fasting and there is a time for eating. This is the art of life. Many Christians have mistaken faith in Christ for something else—a transaction. They expect something in return for their faith in Christ, be it miracles, a job, a mortgage payoff—name it.
Are all these possible with faith? Yes, they are. But is that what true faith calls for? No.
Then what’s the point of believing if you are not expecting something in return, some may say? What’s the point of believing when God seems not to answer nor care about our perishing lives? There is indeed no point of doing so. However, let me ask you: “What then is faith?”
It is believing even when things seem not to be working, rejoicing when things aren’t going as planned, or thanking God for those miracles you want Him to manifest in your life.
Just like a promise your parents made to you when you were still young—that they would buy you a certain gift if you did well in school or in a sport. You believed them (took them at their word without seeing or proof) and worked tirelessly hard to ensure you got those grades or performed outstandingly in that sport. You placed your faith in your parents and counted on them to fulfil their word.
Did they actually eventually buy you that gift after you achieved those grades? That’s for you to know. Obviously, not all parents fulfilled their promises to us due to very many varying circumstances, but we have a Father who is even more trustworthy than our parents.
Our reliance on Him is seen through the faith we put in His word. Ensuring we do not fall short of His grace, we endeavour to live according to His word amidst all temptations not to. How come then that sometimes some of the promises He makes to us in His word do not seem to be manifesting in our lives?
Let us not forget what He told the prophet Jeremiah in Jeremiah 1:12 NRSVA:
“Then the Lord said to me, ‘You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.’”
This is a promise from the Lord. Though the heavens and earth may pass away, His word endures forever.You may then wonder when this is even going to happen. Our God is perfect in His timing, for He is neither late nor too early but comes just in time.
As it is written in Isaiah 60:22 NRSVA:
“…I am the Lord; in its time I will accomplish it quickly.”
Our God is a faithful God. Even our parents may sometimes forget, but He will never. He also goes on to say to Ezekiel:
“Therefore say to them, Thus says the Lord God: None of my words will be delayed any longer, but the word that I speak will be fulfilled, says the Lord God.” Ezekiel 21:28 NRSVA
If the Lord not only went to such lengths to give you this promise but also came down and died for your sins so that you may be set free from all your afflictions and bondages. How much harder is it for Him to fulfil His word in your life?
Faith is what sustains Him. His hand moves in the midst of our faith. His word is still alive, powerful, and working.
“Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12 NRSVA
Our God still reigns. In the midst of the noise, the chaos, even in the face of death! His word remains the same. And only by holding onto it through faith can we overcome. And how can you do this anyway, when life seems to be falling apart?
