Trust When You Cannot Understand
Today you may be facing a situation that you just do not understand. You find yourself wondering, “What in the world is going on?” Maybe you are even asking, “God, why is this happening?” or “God, when will it end?” It is easy to trust God when He answers our prayers right away but often not so easy when He seems to be delaying in answering. We are told in scripture to “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him” (Psalm 37:7a).
The Bible makes it clear that we are to trust God, even when we do not understand or circumstances, or for that matter, like our circumstances. Picture yourself standing in complete darkness in the middle of the night trusting that at dawn the sun will come up and the sky will soon shine brightly. In Proverbs 4:18 we read that very thing, “But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, that shines brighter and brighter until the full day.”
I offer you the following poem, taken from “Streams in the Desert: 366 Daily Devotional Readings (October 23),” compiled by L.B. Cowman and edited by James Reimann.
When the frosts are in the valley,
And the mountaintops are gray,
And the choicest blooms are blighted,
And the blossoms die away,
A loving Father whispers,
“This all comes from my hand”;
Blessed are you if you trust when you cannot understand.
If, after years of toiling,
Your wealth should fly away
And leave your hands all empty,
And your hair is turning gray,
Remember then your Father
Owns all the sea and land;
Blessed are you if you trust when you cannot understand.
The prophet Isaiah, in foretelling the restoration of Israel, said this, “But Zion said, The LORD has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me. Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me” (Isaiah 49:14-16). At the time of the return from exile, the Holy City would be in ruins and the walls around the city would no longer exist. But the Lord assures his people that he has not forgotten them by illustrating that his love is greater even than a mother’s love for her child.
So, today, even if current your circumstances make no sense, trust that you are engraved on the hands of God – “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6).”
If you are encouraged by this or any of my writings, you can subscribe to be notified by email when I post something new. To subscribe, click here. Once you put in your email address you will then get an email confirming that you wish to subscribe. Thank you.