Other Bestsellers by Cherie Hill

WAITING on GOD

BE STILL

(Let Jesus Calm Your Storms)

empty.

(Living Full of Faith When Life Drains You Dry)

THE WAYS of GOD

(Finding Purpose Through Your Pain)

Beginning at The End

(Finding God When Your World Falls Apart)

FAITH Under Construction

© 2012 by Cherie Hill

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the author.

© Cover Image: image copyright Rufous, used under license from Shutterstock.com.

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Bonus Features

BE STILL

(Let Jesus Calm Your Storms)

THE WAYS of GOD

(Finding Purpose Through Your Pain)

empty.

(Living Full of Faith When Life Drains You Dry)

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Hope Being Gone

It comes with little or no warning. It grips you before you ever know you’re within its grasp. It shows up like an uninvited guest. Without you knowing it, it schedules an appointment in your life; there’s no warning signal, no phone call, and no note left on the kitchen table. Night falls just like any other night, and the sun rises just like every other morning, but the despair closes in unexpectedly, and you’re not sure you’ll make it through the day.

Hopelessness arrives at the most inopportune moments. It doesn’t care that you’ve got a job to go to or bills to pay. It doesn’t appear to matter that your health is failing, relationships are falling apart, or you’re in too much pain to even pray. It doesn’t seem to mind that you’re already drowning in despair, as you struggle through the troubles of life. Hopelessness comes, makes itself comfortable, and waits for us to demand that it leave. If Faith doesn’t return soon, Hopelessness may just be moving in for good.

But, it’s just not that easy. Hopelessness can drag conversations out and wear us down. Its argument is compelling, and Hopelessness, in a twisted sort of way, becomes our friend. Hopelessness even surprises us with its awkward comfort. With hopelessness around . . . we can give up. We don’t have to waste our energy trying. We don’t have to waste our time believing in anything. Hopelessness gives us a great excuse as to why our life is falling apart at the seams, and we’re resolved to watch it simply unfold without Hope and Faith.

With Hopelessness around, we don’t see Faith much anymore. Faith drops in for a short while, from time to time, but doesn’t stay long. Hopelessness seems to make Faith feel unwelcomed, and so, Faith comes around less and less often. Hopelessness has taken the place of Faith, and in a moment where Hopelessness rests and we’re able to quietly sit before God, we wonder, “What happened?” Our heart begins to cry out in pain and desperation in ways that are too difficult for words. It was within moments that Hopelessness came diligently knocking. Who opened the door? Why didn’t God step into the picture? Isn’t He the One overseeing our life? Isn’t He supposed to be sovereign? Isn’t He supposed to be in charge, protecting us from this sort of thing? Why would He allow this to happen?

Edwin Lutzer asks the questions that all of us do in times of hopelessness and despair, in his book, Why Good People Do Bad Things:

But how can we trust our heavenly Father when it seems so obvious that He does not give us the same care as most earthly fathers? For example, I know my father would keep me from having cancer if it were within his power to do so; he would keep me from having accidents, heartaches, and disappointments if all power were in his hand. But the actions of our heavenly Father are less predictable; He allows the most heartbreaking of circumstances. Does He really love us—even more than an earthly father could? But He has a different agenda. Our earthly father values our comfort; our heavenly Father values faith. Our earthly father values happiness; our heavenly Father values holiness. Our earthly father values the blessings of time; our heavenly Father values the blessings of eternity. That is why Paul wrote, ‘I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us’ (Romans 8:18).

The questions are endless, and so is God’s silence . . . so it seems. We wonder how a loving God could ever allow us to go through circumstances in which the magnitude and scope of our sorrow goes far beyond comprehension. Our unbearable, heartbreaking situations in life are such that time will never even begin to take the pain away. But, we’re not alone. The man God addressed as “a man after my own heart,” cried out words of despair that leave no room for misinterpretation:

Why, O Lord, do you stand so far off?

Why do you hide yourself

in times of trouble?

(Psalm 10:1 NIV)

And Job was a man that God praised in saying, “Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth. He is blameless—a man of complete integrity. He fears God and stays away from evil” (Job 1:8 NLT). Yet, we read Job’s heart wrenching cry to God:

I cry to you, O God,

but you don’t answer.

I stand before you,

but you don’t even look.

(Job 30:20 NLT)

It was Jeremiah’s cries of agony and anger that echoes our hearts to God in our disappointment and desperation:

Even when I cry and call for help,

he shuts out my prayer.

(Lamentations 3:8-9 GOD’s WORD)

We may not find our names written within the pages of Scripture, but we could have easily penned the words upon them. In moments of hopelessness, it’s hard to tell if someone else wrote the words or had the foresight to know our heart’s desperate cry for help:

Why do you look the other way?

Why do you ignore

our suffering and oppression?

(Psalm 44:24 NLT)

We suddenly realize that our problem isn’t that we haven’t trusted God, but that we trusted God and believed He’d come through, and He didn’t. He could have prevented our pain and suffering, but He chose not to. The tragic truth hits us,

“God allows in His wisdom

what He could easily prevent

in His power” —Graham Cooke

As Hopelessness has consumed your life, and you’re not sure you’ll make it through, you need to know something that’s vital—God never abandons you.

The Lord will never desert his people

or abandon those who belong to him.

(Psalm 94:14 GOD’S WORD)

You may feel like He’s shut you out, but what He’s really done is “shut you up.” In your moments of utter helplessness, it’s the hard places in life that threaten to destroy your faith. It’s those places of complete hopelessness where God will strengthen your faith in ways that you cannot imagine. You want a way out—He’s making a way through. You crave comfort and He brings you to the Cross. You know the place:

There is sickness, but no healing.

You’re faithful, but others betray you.

You hope, but all hope seems gone.

You give to God and others,

but you lose everything.

You love, but find hatred greeting you

at every corner.

You’re afflicted in every way,

but there’s no deliverance.

You call out to God,

but there is no answer.

Though we’re tempted to believe that God has abandoned us, nothing could be further from the Truth. We’ve declared that He’s destroyed our faith, but what He’s really done is “shut us up” to our faith. He’s brought us to the Cross . . . where all hope seems gone, but Redemption is sure. It’s the place where God’s greatest works are done. Though our faith seems crucified, God’s merely working out His plan. He’s working within us, dissolving our doubts, and whittling down our worry. He’s “shutting us up,” until all we can do is “look up.”

But before faith came,

we were kept in custody . . . ,

being “shut up” to the faith

which was later to be revealed.

(Galatians 3:23 NASB)

It’s through our efforts to prove God that He works to prove us. Through our struggles, He’s taking us through successive levels of faith, where He is more confident in our faith than we are . . . He leaves us “shut up to faith,” with nothing to give us hope, but His Word.

Like a child learning to walk, He’s removed all the props holding us up. There’s no evidence that He’s there, there’s no proof that He cares, there’s no rewards and no intervention when we start to fall. He has prepared us to walk on, to continue to trust—through our fears. He carried you, once. Maybe a few more times than that. But now, He sees it fit to mature your faith . . . He thinks you’re ready to walk on your own. You may fall a few times. You may get some pretty nasty scars from those falls. But, He’s there to heal your wounds and pick you up. And then, like a parent teaching their child to walk, He’ll get you back on your feet . . . encourage you through your fears, and stand aside as He allows you to fight through the doubt.

He’s growing you in unseen ways. He’s giving your faith feet . . . He’s building a bridge through your faith that will enable you to walk across the chasms of life. Though your faith seems to be failing, it is really growing. God is strengthening your faith by asking you to walk upon it. It’s in your darkest moments that God is “proving you.”

. . . and there He proved them.

(Exodus 15:25 ASV)

God is proving you by shutting you up in the testing room of faith. It’s hard there. You’re not sure you’ll pass . . . you wish you had studied more. Anxiety overcomes you as you realize that you simply weren’t prepared for the test—there are too many multiple choice questions, and your enemy is out to trick you. And there’s no help on the test, although it is open Book. You’re on your own. Or are you? When you’re “shut up to faith” . . . stuck with hard decisions, not sure which way to turn, and all hope seems gone, remember one thing and one thing only . . . God is with you.

I will never leave you

nor forsake you.

(Hebrews 13:5 ESV)

Never means never. Don’t be deceived about your faith. God is taking your faith places you never knew it could go. He’s proving you, so that you are strengthened for the rest of the journey.

You used to look for feelings or tokens for your faith . . . things other than the Word of God, but He’s developing a faith in you that isn’t dependent upon what you see. He’s transforming your faith and perfecting it (see Hebrews 12:2). When the storms of life come crashing in, when you’re stuck in a desolate desert, when you’re weak and weary and have no strength to carry on, know that God may have “shut you up to faith,” but He’s shut you in with Himself. He’s with you. He wants to help you work through your faith, so that it might be complete . . . ready for anything.

These trials will show

that your faith is genuine.

(1 Peter 1:7 NLT)

Endure until your testing is over.

Then you will be mature and complete,

and you won’t need anything.

(James 1:4 GOD’s WORD)

The trials of your life are the testing grounds. Allow God to do His work in you. When you’re “shut up to faith,” know that you’ve been brought to the Cross. Deliverance is at hand. You won’t be able to go through it alone—you’ll have to do it in Christ’s strength, not your own. It’s the very reason God has shut you up to faith—He’s showing you that when you’re in need . . . He is all you need. You see, you think your life is falling apart, but it’s really falling into place. God’s taking you on a journey and Hope is just a step of faith away . . . but you should know, a step in the right direction will take you right through the valley.

It’s Hopeless

Hopelessness convinces us that we’re supposed to live life from mountaintop to mountaintop, yet it’s that kind of thinking that brings about hopelessness in the first place.

. . . do not be surprised at the painful trial

you are suffering, as though something

strange were happening to you.

(1 Peter 4:12 NLT)

In order to go from mountaintop to mountaintop, we must first go through the valley. There’s no other way to go from mountain to mountain. Some of the richest soils in the world are found in valleys, and your spiritual life is no different. God will grow your faith in the deepest valleys of your life . . . He knows the soil is rich there. He knows how to grow your faith. The valley may seem like an undesirable place to be. Its darkness is deceiving. In the valley all hope seems gone, but it is not.

Psalm 23 says that in the valley there is a “shadow of death,” but don’t miss the one crucial word to take note of: shadow. It’s just a shadow—it’s not the real thing. It may seem like you’re not going to make it through this valley, you may be tempted to believe it’s hopeless, but it’s here, in the valley, where hope is born.

There’s more to Psalm 23. Don’t miss out on what’s really going on in the valley. Don’t misunderstand what God is really doing in your life.

The Lord is my shepherd;

I have all that I need.

He lets me rest in green meadows;

he leads me beside

peaceful streams.

He renews my strength.

He guides me along right paths,

bringing honor to his name.

Even when I walk

through the darkest valley,

I will not be afraid,

for you are close beside me.

Your rod and your staff

protect and comfort me.

You prepare a feast for me

in the presence of my enemies.

You honor me by anointing

my head with oil

My cup overflows with blessings.

Surely your goodness

and unfailing love

will pursue me

all the days of my life,

and I will live in the

house of the Lord forever.

(Psalm 23 NLT)

Listen, Psalm 23 wasn’t written to be read to you at your funeral. Psalm 23 is meant to bring hope to your soul right now . . . in your hopelessness . . . in your valley.

You need to be keenly aware of God’s promises through the valley: He promises you will have all that you need, even though you think you need more. He will give you rest and peace as He renews your strength and guides you in every way, although you feel weary and lost. He doesn’t want you to be afraid, because He is with you and He will protect and comfort you, even when you continually face fear. Not only that, but He’s taking down your enemies, He’s going to give you the victory over everything that opposes His good plans for your life, even when it appears the enemy is winning and you’re going down. God is going to overflow your life with blessings, and His goodness and unfailing love are going to consume you every single day, even though you might not recognize that it is so. And guess what? All of that happens in the valley. Not on the mountaintop.

How many times have you ever heard someone say, “My faith grew the most through the best times of my life.”? More often, you’ll hear testimony that a person’s faith grew the most through the most trying times. Significant seasons of spiritual growth always correspond with the most difficult trials of your life. It’s when you’re down, that you have nowhere to look, but up.

You too, can transform your tragedies into testimonies, but you’ll have to do one thing and one thing only—you’ll have to trust God. You’ll have to have faith. You’re going to have to trust God in greater ways than you ever thought you’d have to. Although you feel you’ve given Him a fair shot in faith and He failed, you’re going to need to keep trusting Him. You’re going to have to keep stepping out in faith even though you can’t even see the very next step in front of you—you’re going to have to trust that God will be there. You’re going to have to keep believing, even though you don’t feel like it. You’re going to have to keep reaching out to God, even though you’re exhausted from doing so. You’re going to have to walk by faith, and not by sight. You can’t rely on your feelings and you can’t depend on anything or anyone but God. You’re going to have to walk through this valley.

The truth is, in your despair, you’ve got clear understanding—your situation REALLY IS hopeless . . . without God. Jesus has looked into your eyes and compassionately assured you through Matthew 19:26 (NIV), “With man, this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.” There’s nothing to fear. The Psalmist assures us we aren’t forsaken in “the valley,” although it seems like it. There’s the Promise that God is with you, He is your Shepherd, He tends to His sheep, and He will provide and protect you along the way.

And you’re going to have to make the decision to walk by faith, many times over. You may have to make the choice every single hour, or even minute, of your life, as you walk through unthinkable difficulties. There will be many reasons to doubt, but God instructs us not to “lean on our own understanding” in Proverbs 3:5:

Trust in the Lord

with all your heart and lean not

on your own understanding. (NIV)

Seek His will in all you do,

and He will show you

which path to take. (NLT)

You’re not going to know which way to go or what to do, unless you’re trusting God. God’s ways are perfect (Psalm 18:30), so you might want to go His way and not your own.  It may not appear that His way is best, but it is. It might not look like He knows what He’s doing, but He does. And His way is through the valley. Sooner or later, we’ll all find ourselves in the valley, so we might as well allow God to take us through it. The only way out is through and the only way through is with God’s help.

So, as you step out in faith, against all hope, you’ll need to know a few Truths about the valley that will get you through it:

God controls the depth and length of your valley experience.  You need to be aware that the deeper the valley, the greater work God is able to do in it. Your greatest growth in faith will be in moments where all hope seems gone. That’s where faith is born and faith births hope. Rest assured, God knows full well what the valley experience will entail, and how long the journey will take to complete His work.

Hopelessness will try to deceive you. You’ll be tempted to believe the valley experience is in vain. You’ll be unable to see any purpose in it. So, don’t even try to walk by sight.

Don’t allow the darkness to dissolve the Light that God is trying to shine into your life. In the darkness, you’ll see God shining His Light on various aspects of your faith. He’ll brightly reveal whether or not you have a solid belief system. If we don’t have a firm grasp on who God is and what He’s about, we don’t have a prayer of making it through the valley—much less life. Without a firm grip on God’s love and faithfulness, our faith will fail. God is using this valley to allow you to sort through your core beliefs. The valley enables you to determine whether you really trust God or not.

You’ll come to understand whether or not you truly believe His promises, or you just find them to be nice bits of encouragement without much substance. There are decisions to be made in the valley.

Although God is paving the path ahead of you, you ultimately choose whether or not you’ll go where He is leading you. EVERYTHING God allows in the valley is with purpose. Every situation is permitted, so that you might grow in faith. Know this: God doesn’t allow you to travel through the valley any longer than what is absolutely necessary to accomplish His purposes in and through you. If you’re still in the valley, there’s still work to be done. And it’s here in the valley where God has your full attention.

The Valley is where you find true Hope. You thought you had hope, until tragedy took over. You thought you walked by faith, until you found yourself consumed in the darkness of despair. And that’s where true faith and true hope are birthed. When life is going according to our plan, seldom do we ask God about His. We will never come to understand God’s incredible protection and power in our lives, unless we are in desperate need of it. But, when tragedy strikes and we’re in over our heads, God is able to show Himself strong. If He doesn’t step in and save the day in the moment you ask Him to, know that He trusts you more than you think. He’s trusting you with His silence, and He’s withholding His blessing to try you—developing your faith to a greater degree. He’s teaching you to patiently endure and draw nearer to Him. You may be long tried, but you’ll be richly rewarded.

And so, having patiently waited,

he obtained the promise.

(Hebrews 6:15 NASB)

God promises that His Word never fails. He accomplishes all that He wants it to (see Isaiah 55:11). It will accomplish all that He wants it to in your life, too—do not be deceived that it will not. It’s through your quiet submission to God’s will and His ways that He will make a way through your valley.

Through His Divine Sovereignty and Infinite Wisdom, and through all His delays, it’s through your believing expectations that God’s glory will be realized in your life. God will deliver you—in His perfect time, in His perfect way.

We have escaped like a bird

out of the fowler’s snare;

the snare has been broken,

and we have escaped.

(Psalm 124:7 NIV)

It’s in the valley where you’ll find a God who is an ever–present help in times of trouble (see Psalm 46:1)—He’s a refuge and strength, until our calamities have passed (Psalm 57:1).

In the valley, where all hope seems gone, we find God’s presence in our pain, His love through our losses, and His incredible patience despite our bitter complaints.

It’s when we’re stripped of pride that our love for God is renewed, our character is refined, and our heart is purified. The work that God does in the valley is worth all the pain that must be endured. Just wait, trust Him, you’ll see. One day your faith will end in sight.

The valley is where your faith is tested and tried. Okay, so you already knew this one. You’re being tested beyond reason and you simply can’t hold up under the pressure. But, you’re not expected to. Jesus needed someone to help carry His cross—He’ll help you carry yours. All He asks is that through the valley . . . you surrender to Him. God wants you to surrender to Him in every area of your life, so that He can complete His work in you. Know this: if you don’t surrender your will for His, He’ll keep you in the valley, until you do. He loves you that much. He accepts you as you are, but loves you far too much to leave you that way. His purposes are always centered upon transforming you into the image of Christ. This is how He uses all things for good (see Romans 8:28). Though difficult to understand, faith trusts that God is at work. And faith is voiced through praise. You may be shouting at God, but are you shouting in a way that He responds to? Are you shouting a shout of faith? A shout of praise? There’s only one way to enter His gates—it’s through praise.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving

and his courts with praise;

give thanks to him and

praise his name.

(Psalm 100:4 NIV)

You want God’s attention? Start praising Him in the valley . . . where all hope seems gone. Your murmurs of praise are more valuable than the wails of your wavering faith. Through your shouts of praise, His gates are thrown open.  The way “out,” is through your shouts . . . of praise. In the face of impossibilities, laying claim to God’s promises and praising Him for His faithfulness moves His heart AND hand. When there are no signs of victory and your faith is failing, it’s your shouts of praise through the pain that will bring Light to your darkness. It’s by faith that we have hope . . . and hope does not disappoint.

And this hope

will not lead to disappointment.

For we know

how dearly God loves us . . .

(Romans 5:5 NLT)

Though God hasn’t led you out of the valley yet, you can thank Him that He will. You can thank Him that He’s with you and you can tell Him that you completely trust that He is. You can thank Him for His Word that encourages your faith as you travel through this valley in your life, and ask Him to strengthen your faith for the next one ahead. You can thank Him for loving you enough to do a work in you. You can thank Him that even through your weakness . . . He is your strength. You can praise Him for His provision and power in situations that seem insurmountable. You can lift Him up, just as He is lifting you. You can have faith, even when all hope seems gone.

[For Abraham, human reason for]

hope being gone,

hoped in faith

that he should become the father

of many nations,

as he had been promised, . . .

(Romans 4:18 AMP)

Faith Is

You thought you needed hope, but what you really need is faith. And although you believe, you need help with your unbelief.

I do believe;

help me overcome my unbelief.

(Mark 9:24 NIV)

There’s a battle going on. No one needs to tell you that. You see good vs. evil every day of your life. The question is, “Do you recognize it for what it truly is?” Just as the man speaking to Jesus in Mark 9:24, we believe, but we have unbelief that still resides within us. The battle rages war inside our soul and wreaks havoc in our spirit. We grow increasingly weary in the fight and we just want the battle over. But, we want it over without having to fight. Know this: there’s no victory without a battle.

Fight the good fight of faith.

Take hold of the eternal life to

which you were called . . .

(1 Timothy 6:12 NIV)

In the valley of your life, there’s a battle going on. You may constantly feel that you’re under attack . . . and you are. You might think this world is against you, but you’re wrong. It’s not flesh and blood that you’re in a battle against—it’s a far greater power than that:

For we are not wrestling

with flesh and blood

[contending only

with physical opponents],

but against the despotisms,

against the powers,

against [the master spirits who are]

the rulers of this present darkness,

against the spirit forces of wickedness

in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.

(Ephesians 6:12 AMP)

And you thought your enemy was your boss, your government, your spouse, your wayward child, or the disease you’re fighting. You’ll need more resources than you thought, and God has given them to you. All you need to do is put on the Armor (see Ephesians 6:13-17). Though each piece of the armor is incredibly important, there’s one piece that is vital . . . it’s your first line of defense against the enemy of your soul, as he wages war against you. You’ll need to consistently use the shield of faith. If you have the shield of faith, the enemy’s fiery arrows can’t hit you. With the shield of faith, the battle becomes less intense . . . and with your sword, the Word of God, the enemy doesn’t stand a chance. If the enemy can’t injure you with his arrows, you maintain your strength for the battle. For the enemy, that’s not good.

In addition to all this,

take up the shield of faith,

with which you can extinguish

all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

(Ephesians 6:16 NIV)

If you’ll recognize the true battle in your life, you’ll be better prepared to fight it. Faith is more than just believing in God. It’s about trusting in Him, even when there is no evidence that you should. The battle may become more difficult than you ever imagined it would become, but God is greater than anything you face. He has calmed greater storms than yours, He has moved bigger mountains, and He has defeated more powerful giants than the ones that stand before you. But you’ll be tempted to doubt Him. You’ll be tempted to believe that you’ve met your match, and this time, defeat seems inevitable.

So there is no justice among us,

and we know nothing

about right living.

We look for light

but find only darkness.

We look for bright skies

but walk in gloom.

We grope like the blind along a wall,

feeling our way like people without eyes.

Even at brightest noontime,

we stumble as though it were dark.

Among the living,

we are like the dead.

(Isaiah 59:9-10 NLT)

Through our doubt and despair, we’re encouraged to fight the battle with confident expectation, knowing that if we do not throw away our confidence, it will be “richly rewarded” (see Hebrews 10:35).

We find faith in some of the most unexpected places—in hopelessness, as the battle rages against us.  We find that we can come boldly to the throne of grace where we find God’s help when we need it (see Hebrews 4:16). In our fight of faith, we can learn a lot from a “persistent widow.”

In order to encourage us to pray and never give up, in Luke 18, Jesus told a parable. This familiar parable speaks of a widow who wanted justice against her adversary. We’re not told the entire situation, but evidently, she was “bothering” the “judge.” As we focus in on the message that Jesus was trying to convey, we find a judge, who is supposed to represent God, described as unjust, cruel, and indifferent. Even if we believe these to be God’s characteristics, we would never really verse them out loud. But Jesus does. In fact, Jesus talks about the judge, “God,” who kept refusing this widow’s request. He kept “putting her off.” So in an effort to alleviate His distress, not hers . . . to keep Him from being “worn out,” never mind how it must have worn her out! . . . The judge (God) decides to go ahead and answer her request. And Jesus says,

Will not God bring about justice

for his chosen ones,

who cry out to him day and night?

Will he keep putting them off?

I tell you,

he will see that they get justice,

and quickly. However,

when the Son of Man comes,

will he find faith on the earth?

(Luke 18:7-8 NIV)

The fact that Jesus mentions that God will not keep putting us off, alludes to the idea that He DOES and WILL put us off. At times, we may not have a clue as to why! And we learn through this teaching that God may just give in and answer our request simply because He feels like it. The message is loud and clear, but confusing to say the least. Why wouldn’t God answer our requests the first time? Why can’t He just take us out of the valley? Why do we have to go through it?

This side of eternity, we may never have answers to those questions, but there’s one thing we can be certain of: God holds the answers, and it’s Him that we must continually go to in prayer.

Jesus insisted that we pray and never give up. It’s a good idea that we listen to Him, if we are to have any hope at all. He knows our sorrows and our tears. He bottles them and records each one in His book (see Psalm 56:8). He knows that we “cry out to him day and night” (see Luke 18:7 NIV). So when God shows up in our situation, when His answer comes, will we have faith? That was the question Jesus ended this parable with. That was the question that needed answering. It isn’t a matter of IF he’ll show up—we’re assured of that; but will He find faith in us? Will it be a faith that amazes Him or causes Him to weep tears of sorrow over our lack of faith? Is your faith amazing? If it is, then you are not without hope. Hope is not gone.

Faith that Stands

It’s not easy to “Be still and know that God is God.” God calls upon us to trust that He’s in control, but it’s difficult, at best, when life is raging out of control. When we’re “being still,” we assume that means doing nothing; yet, nothing could be further from the Truth. The persistent widow consistently took action, and so must we. Though waiting patiently for God, in stillness, is probably the most difficult thing about our walk of faith, it is also the most critical part of it.

We can’t be tempted to panic when God isn’t showing up when we think He should. And we can’t allow ourselves to despair when He doesn’t do what we thought He would. God’s ways are higher, and they’re also better (see Isaiah 55:8-8). Yet, it takes a journey of faith with God to even begin to believe that Truth. It takes building a relationship with Him and continually coming before Him in prayer before we can ever take hold of our faith.

These times of uncertainty are opportunities for God to reveal himself to you to a greater degree and grow your faith in ways that you can’t imagine. God is continually searching the earth for people who will trust Him through every crisis and cling to Him alone in every hopeless situation. Though it’s hard for us to come to grips with, God is often the One who leads us into or allows us to face situations that are beyond our control. The situations are often frightening and overwhelming, to say the least. But, God does so, in order to grow our faith—He leads us into these situations to see if we have a faith that stands and trusts in Him completely. In our moments of despair, it’s through His still small voice that we hear Him shouting through a megaphone of pain:

Be still, and know that I am God.

(Psalm 46:10 NIV)

God allows the hard places in our lives, these moments in the valley, to alert us to our need for Him. Our struggles are tools in the hands of God, as He works to make our heart more like His. Everything He does is to produce faith in us. And through the process, He promises never to abandon us (see Hebrews 13:5).

You may be at a Red Sea in your life, you may be facing giants that are sure to take you down, you might be faced with lions that are ready to devour you, and you might be walking through a fiery furnace, but none of that matters . . . God is for you, and He is with you . . . always (see Matthew 28:20).

You may be facing the unthinkable: there’s no way of escape, no place to hide, and nowhere to run. You may be up against circumstances that seem insurmountable even for God. But, nothing is too difficult for God (see Luke 1:37).

God is giving your faith an opportunity to grow. He’s producing a faith in you that stands and will cause you to be ready for anything—lacking in nothing (see James 1:4). And whether you realize it or not, He’s denying, for a period, what you want, in order to give you what you need. You don’t need more hope . . . you need more of God. You need something deeper and richer in your spirit that only He can provide. And it’s when “all hope is gone,” that He gives true hope (see 1 Timothy 1:1).

He’s brought you into these situations to give you the opportunity to practice your faith, so that you might know where you stand with God. Though you’re tempted to fear, in God’s strength, you can stand still and watch His deliverance (see 2 Chronicles 20:17). It is God that will part your Red Sea, it is the Lord that will rescue you from the lion’s den, and it is Him alone that will be with you and protect you in the furnace of affliction. He will be your strength when you’re too weak to carry on. You need only be still:

In quietness and in trust

shall be your strength . . .

(Isaiah 30:15 NASB)

We can’t try and figure it all out . . . we must simply take our position of faith in the face of all our fears. We may not know what to do, but God does; if we’ll keep our eyes upon Him, He’ll save us while we rest, as we stand in faith upon His Promises.

As you struggle with doubt in the midst of your faith, God urges you to stand still in your crisis, lean on Him in faith, and trust Him to see you through. Be determined, against all odds to be found in the end with “faith that stands.” Trust God—be still—no matter what.

Faith Wanted

So, we get the “faith” thing. We know we’re supposed to “believe” God, not just believe in Him . . . but it appears evident that we just don’t have “enough” faith. Quite possibly we need more faith. Don’t be deceived in the battle . . . you’ve got all the faith you need. Have you ever seen a mustard seed? That’s all the faith you need . . . according to Jesus. So, take a step of faith and take His Word for it. You have all the faith that’s necessary, if your faith is grounded in the Word of God.

We can easily be confused about faith. If we’re fully trusting in God’s promises to us, our faith will never falter and it will certainly never fail.

Faith comes by hearing the message,

and the message is heart through

the word of Christ.

(Romans 10:17 NIV)

Faith detached from the Word of God is not faith at all. You don’t need more faith, you need more of God. And that’s why He allows us to travel through valleys, to face circumstances that are far beyond our control. The Truth is that the Word of God permeates our lives, as we daily draw near to Him. As we get to know Him, in an intimate way, by knowing how He thinks and what He promises, we will begin to experience an inner strength that produces confidence and ultimately faith.

“I do not recall another period when ‘faith’ was as popular as it is today. If only we believe hard enough we’ll make it somehow. So goes the popular chant. What you believe is not important. Only believe . . . What is overlooked in all of this is that faith is good only when it engages truth; when it is made to rest upon falsehood it can and often does lead to eternal tragedy. For it is not enough that we believe; we must believe the right thing about the right One.” —A.W. Tozer

They say that the hardest part of faith is the last half hour—maybe you’ve only got twenty nine minutes to go. It’s said that the night of confusion always comes just before the victory, just before the darkness breaks and light begins to dawn—maybe your sun is about to rise. Maybe if you’ll be persistent like the widow, you’ll wear God out. And maybe in that process, you’ll get to know Him better, as you daily approach His throne of grace (see Hebrews 4:16).

Through your consistent prayer, God is developing a faith in you that you weren’t expecting. It’s persevering faith. It’s a faith that does not give up “until. . .” This kind of faith doesn’t give up quickly, and holds fast, even if things get worse instead of better—even if an answer to your prayer seems more and more impossible. This kind of faith doesn’t walk by sight. This is the faith that moves mountains. This is the kind of faith that brings hope. Through this kind of faith, hope is never gone.

Beyond the Doubt

Like an uninvited guest, Doubt shows up at the most inopportune times—usually it’s when life is “messy” . . . we haven’t had time to get things in order, and it appears that everything is falling apart at the seams. Just when we begin to grasp on to whatever is left of our faith . . . Doubt comes knocking at the door. But, when we find Doubt knocking . . . we should be sure and let Faith answer.

Life is difficult at best; although our human instinct is to believe that our faith in God should make life “better”. . . nothing could be further from the Truth.

We’re promised that in this world we will have trouble—we should count on it (see John 16:33). But through it all, in every valley, we should trust in God’s sovereignty, supernatural power, love, mercy, and grace.

But, it’s in our times of despair that Doubt takes over and begins to wreak havoc in our souls. We find ourselves between the walls of the Red Sea . . . assured that God has rescued us in the past, but filled with doubt, as we see the treacherous waters ready to come crashing in on us and an encroaching army ready to attack.

The situation seems “doubtful.” It seems “unlikely” that God will show up “this time.” Our faith “used to” work, but now it seems to be failing. This time, God didn’t come through . . . this time, God didn’t show up . . . and we’ve lost our confidence. We’re just not exactly sure He still cares.

The anxiety within you can build to such a point that it’s not the waters of the Red Sea that are drowning you . . . it’s the waves of Doubt that have flooded your soul and your spirit cries out, “Is God with really with me or isn’t He?”

You might think that you’re the only one who gets regular “unwanted” visits from Doubt, but you can rest assured that Doubt shows up at the door of every believer time and time again. Doubt will walk right in when the door has been left unlocked. More often, Doubt will break down the door and demand your company. At other times, when Faith has stepped out for a while, Doubt decides to visit and, at times, we decide to welcome Doubt in to sit down and chat for a while. The result of that time with Doubt leads us deeper into despair . . . we so easily forget about Faith, as we spend endless hours visiting with Doubt.

Doubt, sometimes, leaves on its own . . . but its presence often lingers. We give Faith a call, letting Faith know that Doubt has left, but Faith fails to answer. So, we pretend that Faith has come back, even when it isn’t so. We desperately try to portray unshakeable faith, when it’s really crumbling to pieces.

What we must remember, in our darkest moments of life, is that God has often led us to the very place where we cry out in despair . . . in the midst of a parted Red Sea . . . in the valley where all hope seems gone. And He has done so to teach us a much needed lesson in our walk of faith—we cannot deliver ourselves from a crisis that God himself has orchestrated.

Too often, it is by His design that we are in the midst of our overwhelming situation. We so quickly become focused upon the seemingly insurmountable circumstances, instead of our supernatural God. God is not limited in power or resources . . . ever.

The outcome of our trial depends upon one thing: Our faith in God. The question is: “Will your faith stand this test . . . and the next one . . . and the next one?” God brings you through test after test, in order to build a testimony in you that says, “My God is faithful.”

When we’re put to the ultimate test of faith, and we will encounter it at one time or another, we find overwhelming circumstances . . . giant issues facing us, high seas of affliction, and the evil of principalities and powers seeking to destroy us. It is then that we must totally cast ourselves on God’s Promises and slam the door on Doubt. We must decide to confidently walk forward, as the walls of the Sea seem eager to take us down, and believe that God is bigger than any problem or enemy that might come against us. It’s this kind of faith that brings a calm and rest to our soul, no matter what our situation. When we settle, once and for all, that “God is bigger,” we can find the peace that surpasses all understanding reigning within us.

Whatever you’re going through, God is in it. He has allowed the circumstances that have brought Doubt to your door, and He’s increasing your faith by threatening to destroy it. If you are walking in faith, God has ordered your steps—He has put you where you are. He has good reason for it—you are being tested.

When you’re consumed with Doubt . . . when everything appears hopeless . . . when there seems no way of escape . . . when you’re overcome with fear because everything is crumbling down around you . . . when there’s nowhere to turn and no answers to be found, God says one thing:

Don't be afraid.

Just stand still and watch the LORD

rescue you today. (Exodus 14:13 NLT)

It’s beyond the doubt, as you stand still, holding your peace, and stay focused upon your sovereign God, that you will find God’s deliverance doesn’t come through something you do, say, or pray . . . but through your faith. It’s all about trusting God, and living like you do.

Amazing Faith—

So Seldom Found

We’re told that living by faith enables us to move mountains, walk on water, calm the storms in our lives, heal the sick and make them well, and so much more (see John 14:12). But very few, will ever experience that kind of amazing power of God in their life.

We tend to believe that when prayers go unanswered, we just don’t have enough faith. But, what we fail to understand is that, it’s not the amount of faith that’s important, it’s the focus of our faith that gets God’s attention (see 1 Chronicles 5:20).

Jesus told us that all we needed was the faith of a mustard seed! (see Matthew 17:20) Surely we have faith the size of a mustard seed! So, what kind of faith is necessary to move the hand of God? If the size is so small, what are we missing? We can find those answers in the life of a Roman centurion; it was his faith that changed a desperate crisis into a hope filled event.

The faith that moves the hand of God is the faith that amazes Him. Amazing faith was found in a man of great authority, a centurion, a leader in the Roman army. It is evident through his actions, that his faith came, not only from hearing, but in believing, what he was told about Jesus. He didn’t have to witness the great miracles of Jesus; he walked by faith, not by sight.

You’re going to learn something about your faith and you’re going to gain insight into the ways of God, by taking an in depth look at this situation. It’s critical that you understand amazing faith as you journey through the valley.

Now, this centurion was able to show his great faith only because there was a dire situation—he had a servant who was ill; we’re told the servant was “dear to him” (see Luke 7:2). Had his servant not gotten ill, this centurion would have never had the opportunity to encounter Jesus—keep that in mind in your own life. So, this centurion went to Jesus to ask for help; in Matthew 8: 5-13 we read:

When Jesus returned to Capernaum, a Roman officer came and pleaded with him, ‘Lord my young servant lies in bed, paralyzed and in terrible pain.’ Jesus said, ‘I will come and heal him’ But the officer said, ‘Lord I am not worthy to have you come into my home. Just say the word from where you are, and my servant will be healed. I know this because I am under the authority of my superior officers, and I have authority over my soldiers. I only need to say, ‘Go,’ and they go, or ‘Come,’ and they come. And if I say to my slaves, ‘Do this,’ they do it. When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. Turning to those who were following him, he said, ‘I tell you the truth, I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel!’ . . . Then Jesus said to the Roman officer, ‘Go back home. Because you believed, it has happened.’ And the young servant was healed that same hour. (Matthew 8:5-13 NIV)

The faith that amazed Jesus was a faith that had complete confidence in His authority as the Son of God. Our faith is in vain, if we do not clearly understand what made this man’s faith so great. If we want God to do extraordinary things in our lives, then we need to have amazing faith:

Amazing Faith seeks God and understands His authority. Our first step in living a life of amazing faith is to seek Jesus. It would have been well within the centurion’s rights, as an officer, to issue an order than Jesus be found and brought to him, but he didn’t. The centurion went to Jesus . . . and when he did, he immediately calls Him, “Lord.” This centurion believed in what he had heard about the miracles Jesus had performed—he had complete confidence in Him (see Matthew 4:24). He believed, without ever seeing the miracles with his own eyes.

Do we have that same faith? Who do we recognize as having ultimate authority in our lives? It’s not where God goes in our times of need, but where we go. If we’re going anywhere but the throne of God, we’ve gone to the wrong place. And when we come to Jesus, we can be full of joy that He is our greatest friend; yet, we must also clearly recognize that He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Amazing faith fully comprehends the authority of our Savior (see Matthew 28:18).

Amazing Faith seeks God’s will and surrenders to it. We find the centurion coming to Jesus and simply informing him of the illness of his servant. He doesn’t ask Jesus to do anything about it—he simply presents the situation.

He could have used his authority to command Jesus to heal the servant, but he doesn’t. He wasn’t presumptuous or demanding, but submissive and reverent. It seems very clear that the centurion boldly brought this need to Jesus, seeking out His will concerning the matter. He didn’t try and demand his own way, but trusted in Jesus to handle the situation as He saw fit. So, how do we handle our petitions in life? Do we bring our situations before God, asking for His will in our circumstances and trust Him completely? Or do we come to the throne of grace, demanding our will be done? Amazing faith trusts God and His ways.

Amazing faith is filled with humility. There was no doubt that the centurion displayed sincere humility. Not only had the centurion expressed a clear recognition of Jesus’ superior authority, but He truly felt himself to be unworthy to be in the presence of the Son of God. James 4:6 says, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

God responds when we are totally dependent upon Him, understanding our true condition before Him. God wants us in a place of recognizing our need for His grace. It is His grace that is sufficient for our every need and He gives it out of love. There is nothing we can do to earn it and we must clearly understand, just as the centurion did, that we are not deserving of it. Our ability to even come into the presence of God, bringing our lives before Him, is strictly an act of His grace. Amazing faith, understands God’s Amazing grace.

Amazing faith trusts God and His Word. One of the most amazing aspects of this centurion’s faith was his complete trust in the authority of Christ’s Word. He was confident that if Jesus would give a command, the healing would take place; he didn’t find it necessary that Jesus go to him. He didn’t need to “see it” . . . to “believe it,” he trusted in the authority and Words of Jesus. He knew exactly Who Jesus was. As a believer, we must surrender our total confidence to the Word, without seeing any evidence, and in spite of everything that contradicts it. In our own lives, when we pray, do we have this same faith? When we go before the throne of grace, do we really trust all that God has to do is “say the word” and it will be done? Amazing faith approaches God not for what He gives, but for who He is.

“Amazing faith, so seldom found,” is faith that recognizes God’s authority, seeks Him out, surrenders to His will, is humble before Him, and trusts in Him and His Word. So, as you seek God’s very best in your life, the begging question is, “Is your faith amazing?”

The Focus of Faith

Maybe your faith is amazing. Quite possibly, God is completely awed by your faith, but the mountain still stands before you and hasn’t budged. Your Red Seas aren’t parting and the encroaching army has just closed in. You trusted God for something, believing Him at every turn, and He didn’t show up. In fact, it seems that life has turned out in complete opposition to your prayers. How does this happen? You try to carry on, continuing to pray when there is continued silence from heaven, but as you dig deep within your spirit, you realize, something has died. You believed God, you had confidence in Him, but now you don’t. You try to pretend that you still believe, but deep down . . . you know your hope is gone.

You realize God has been shaking your faith, but you never thought He’d shake it until it crumbled to pieces. When you try to pick up what remains of your faith, you’re not sure there’s anything left to salvage. The questions of despair haunt our hearts . . . What went wrong? Why has God abandoned me? Where has He gone and where is His help? Darkness sheds no light, and despair gives no room, to even get a glimpse at hope.

So here you are, hope being gone, looking to a God who remains silent. Your circumstances may be so overwhelming that you’re just not able to even face them one more day. But, God is. And He’s at work . . . right now . . . in this very moment. Although it’s all about your faith, it’s really not. It’s all about God and your willingness to abandon all else, risking all that you are, to continue to trust Him, even when there’s no apparent reason that you should. Your situation isn’t going to change because of your faith, if your faith is not focused upon God alone. Your faith can’t be focused on a particular outcome, but on a God who knows you intimately and is aware of every detail of your life—past, present, and future. Faith trusts God in the dark. Faith that is focused upon God looks beyond the circumstances and only sees Him.

he persevered because

he saw him who is invisible.

(Hebrews 11:27 NIV)

When you look at your trials of life, what do you see? When you need hope, an anchor in the storm, what is holding you firm and secure? If it is anything other than Jesus, you’re probably going to sink.

You want to walk on the water . . . you have faith to get out of the boat . . . but you find yourself, just like Peter, focusing upon the winds of adversity instead of Jesus. He must be the anchor of your soul.

We have this hope as

an anchor for the soul,

firm and secure.

(Hebrews 6:19 NIV)

Jesus is there to encourage you upon the waters, through the storm, in the valley, and He is with you always. He knew the storms would come. He was well aware of the valley He was taking you through, and He knows the mountaintop moment that lies just ahead.

“Therefore we do not lose heart.

Though outwardly

we are wasting away,

yet inwardly we are being

renewed day by day.

For our light and momentary troubles

are achieving for us an eternal glory

that far outweighs them all.

so we fix our eyes not on what is seen,

but what is unseen.

For what is seen is temporary,

but what is unseen is eternal.”

(2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NIV)

The focus of our faith must be on what is unseen. And often times, that is why God brings us into so many valleys in life . . . they demand our faith, they bring us to a place of searching for hope . . . they lead us to Him. And faith doesn’t give us hope because of what God does, but because of Who He is. Though we can’t understand His ways or get a glimpse of Him, our faith trusts in His faithfulness, even when ours is lacking. The focus of our faith allows us to boldly cry out:

Though he slay me,

yet will I hope in him.

(Job 13:15 NIV)

Though time passes and the answer doesn’t come, though it appears it’s too late for God to respond, you must never forget He rolls away stones and raises the dead. That is the God you’re putting your faith in. That’s where your focus should be and that’s why you can have hope.

And don’t for a second believe that your next trial will be any easier. Each trial is meant to test, try, and take you further in your faith that the time before. But never forget: God was with you then and He is with you now. It’s not that God hasn’t answered your prayers in the past, or has failed to work miracles in your life, it’s that you’ve forgotten that He has. You’ll have to fight the fight of faith and recall God’s love for you. You’re going to have to focus on your past deliverances. You’re going to have to reflect on God’s grace, even as you grasp for the strength to take just one more step. Pray that God will remind you of His hand that is active and His Word that is alive in your life.

We need to remember lest we forget. We need to remember when God showed up previously in our lives. We need to remember that each trial of life builds our confidence for the future. We must remember God’s Promises which tell us that as His children we will enjoy the “abundant life” (John 10:10) and find “rest of soul” (Matthew 11:28). We need to never forget in the darkness what God has revealed to us in the Light. He promises that through our confidence in Him, we will be richly rewarded:

Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering . . . So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised. (Hebrews 10:32, 35-36 NIV)

As you focus upon God, through your faith, you’ll find that He can be completely trusted, even though He is not completely understood. You’ll find that you can trust Him through your doubt and in your fears. It’s through your eyes of faith in God that your life will come into focus and hope appears.

Hope in Faith

Hope is never gone when your faith is focused upon God. Faith trusts God above reason and circumstances. Though nothing makes sense and God is seemingly absent, faith trusts that God will work out His plans for good, in His time . . . which may keep you waiting a while. His watch is not like ours and His calendar appears much different than the ones that hang on our walls (see 2 Peter 3:8).

Things may not happen in the way you want or in the timing you desire, but faith trusts that God knows best. His goals are eternal, not earthly. If God is keeping you waiting, know that He’s forcing you to trust Him and He’s drawing you nearer to Him. Embrace His grace. Put your confidence in Him, not what you think He should or shouldn’t do or what He will or won’t do. Trust His every Word, even when you can’t see it at work. You might not see your faith being rewarded, the results may not be desirable, but God is not unjust. His silence is not His solution and His absence is not His answer.

If you’re walking in faith, you can be assured you’ll have a Cross to carry. The Crosses come in all different shapes and sizes. You may have to keep plowing, year after year, when no harvest is in sight. You might be asked to love someone that hates you. You might be called to work for someone who mistreats you. You might find yourself living with an addict who won’t get help. You might be diagnosed with an incurable disease. You might be asked to display God’s glory when your heart is breaking to pieces. No matter your Cross, it is heavy. And rarely, do we ever choose to carry it. But, know this: If Jesus has asked you to carry it, then He is never nearer to you that the moment you lift it, laying it upon your shoulder with patience and in submission . . . taking each step with unwavering faith for as far as He asks you to go. And it may be much further than you ever thought He’d ask of you. You may have to endure more than you ever imagined you could. Jesus is with you. Don’t forget that.

Through your journey of faith, though the Cross seems too heavy to bear, God promises it will never be so.

The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure. (1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT)

It’s when all hope seems gone that He will draw you close to give you wisdom, deepen your peace, increase your courage, and strengthen you to be a testimony to others, even as you’re consumed with distress and despair. In your weakness, He will be your strength.

My grace is sufficient for you

for my power is made perfect in weakness.

(2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV)

It is under the load of the Cross that you are being transformed into the image of Christ. It’s in your greatest trials, your deepest valleys, and through the raging seas of your life that God is doing His most powerful work in and through you. Allow Him to do His work. Trust that He IS at work (see Psalm 121:4). Keep your eyes upon Him no matter what (see 2 Chronicles 20:12).

Though you’re continually brought to your knees, it’s your faith in God that will lift you up and give you hope when all hope seems gone. You’ve been rescued, you’ve been set free. You have the victory—don’t forget in your fears what you know through your faith. You are not without hope if your hope is in God (see Ephesians 2:11-14).

Lay hold of Hope.  God is your Anchor in the fiercest storm. He is your Light in the deepest darkness. He is your strength through all your weaknesses. He is the joy in your pain. He is your peace in spite of the chaos. He is sure and steadfast through the sifting of your faith. And He is all you’ll ever need. He is your hope.

Through Him you believe in

(adhere to, rely on) God,

Who raised Him up from the dead

and gave Him honor and glory,

so that your faith and hope

are [centered and rest]

in God.

(1 Peter 1:21 AMP)

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Promises of HOPE

May the God of hope fill you

with all joy and peace as you trust in him,

so that you may overflow with hope

by the power of the Holy Spirit.

(Romans 15:13 NIV)

Guide me in your truth and teach me,

for you are God my Savior,

and my hope is in you all day long.

(Psalm 25:5 NIV)

You will be secure, because there is hope;

you will look about you and take your rest

in safety. (Job 11:18 NIV)

May integrity and uprightness protect me,

because my hope is in you.

(Psalm 25:21 NIV)

This was so that, by two unchangeable things

[His promise and His oath] in which it is

impossible for God ever to prove false

or deceive us, we who have fled [to Him]

for refuge might have mighty indwelling

strength and strong encouragement

to grasp and hold fast the hope appointed

for us and set before [us].

(Hebrews 6:18-19 AMP)

Be strong and take heart,

all you who hope in the Lord.

(Psalm 31:24 NIV)

But the eyes of the Lord

are on those who fear him,

on those whose hope

is in his unfailing love.

(Psalm 33:18 NIV)

May your unfailing love rest upon us,

O Lord, even as we put our hope in you.

(Psalm 33:28 NIV)

But now, Lord, what do I look for?

My hope is in you. (Psalm 39:7 NIV)

Why are you downcast, O my soul?

Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God,

for I will yet praise him,

my Savior and my God.

(Psalm 42:11 NIV)

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone;

my hope comes from him.

(Psalm 62:5 NIV)

You answer us with awesome deeds of

righteousness, O God our Savior,

the hope of all the ends of the earth

and of the farthest seas.

(Psalm 65:5 NIV)

You are my hiding place and my shield;

I hope in your word. (Psalm 119:114 NIV)

The Lord is my inheritance;

therefore, I will hope in him!

(Lamentations 3:24 NLT)

For everything that was written

in the past was written to teach us,

so that through the endurance taught

in the Scriptures and the encouragement

they provide we might have hope.

(Romans 15:4 NIV)

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BONUS FEATURE:

1st Chapter of

BE STILL

Let Jesus Calm Your Storms

Cherie Hill

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Praise for Be Still

“With this detailed study of the incident of Jesus calming the storm, Cherie Hill has not only brought new light to a familiar Gospel story, she has showed us how to both weather and grow from our personal storms. Be Still is a healing balm to the soul. My best advice—get this book, use it, and buy another one for your best friend!”

—Jim Thomson, M.A., LCPC, author and speaker.

“Be Still is a wealth of Scripture that readers can return to again and again for encouragement in the midst of trials. Be Still is not a book that you read once, put on your bookshelf, and then forget about. It’s a book that doesn't promise quick fixes, or endless sunshine. Instead, it is a lifeline attached to God's Word, designed to help the reader find peace in the midst of each and every storm that comes their way.”

—Deborah Porter, writer, editor, and radio talk show host.

“Be Still—Let Jesus Calm Your Storms combines intellectual common sense, Biblical scriptures, and an author dedicated to helping people who have suffering in their lives. If you are currently going through a storm, this book can definitely help you through it. Buy a copy for yourself, buy a copy for a friend, or leave a copy somewhere for a stranger.”

—Dan Blankenship, author of  The Running Girl.

“The book nicely bridges the gap between those who doubt God because there are storms and the true lessons to be drawn from those storms. One of the best parts of this book is the way the author explores creating both inner and outer peace. Many people are more troubled in their minds than they are in reality; this book can help.”

—Donald M. Mitchell, Amazon.com top 10 Reviewer, Harvard Graduate, author, and CEO featured in Forbes Magazine.

“Be Still, Let Jesus Calm Your Storms, by Cherie Hill, is an inspiring book that Christians, as well as all individuals who are seeking peace in a chaotic world, will find to be ‘life-changing.’ Regardless of where readers are in their walk with God, the words of the author and her use of Scripture to support her advice and encouragement will enable them to understand much more about faith and how it is the path that gives peace of mind in all situations.”

—Bettie Corbin Tucker, Publisher, IP book reviewer, former radio talk show host, and published author.

“I can highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a fulfilling life purpose. Cherie Hill has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and has a Certificate in Biblical Counseling, but her greatest accomplishment is making a difference in the lives of people who are in need of human caring, a few warm words of encouragement and an open heart.”

—Rebecca Johnson, Amazon.com top 10 Reviewer.

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BE STILL

Let Jesus Calm Your Storms

Cherie Hill

© 2010 by Cherie Hill

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the author.

Scripture quotations marked "The Amplified Bible" (AMP) or "The Amplified New Testament" are taken from The Amplified Bible, Old Testament copyright © 1965, 1987 by the Zondervan Corporation and The Amplified New Testament copyright © 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked "ESV" are taken from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version, copyright © 2001, Wheaton: Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV®) are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked "NLT" are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked "NKJV" are taken from The New King James Version / Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville : Thomas Nelson Publishers., Copyright © 1982. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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This book is dedicated to God…

the perfect author of my life.

My greatest joy is just in “knowing” You.

Thank you for teaching me to “Be Still.”

Most of all, thank you for loving me

enough to use my life according

to Your purposes.

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CONTENTS

Preface

Introduction:               The Storm

Chapter 1:               Purpose in the Storm

Chapter 2:               Where are You in the Boat?

Chapter 3:               Lord, Don’t You Care?

Chapter 4:               Where is Your Faith?

Chapter 5:               Resting with Jesus

God’s Word On…

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Preface

I would like to take a moment to explain exactly how this book was inspired and why I believe it can deeply change your life.

As a born again Christian, I began asking God to give my life purpose and fill me in a way that the world could not. I needed something that was eternal and meaningful. And well, God answered me. I believe that God has always had a plan for me, yet it was only when I finally reached out to Him that He revealed His purpose for my life. God began to show me all of the “spiritual gifts” that He had given to me. He gave me insight as to how all of my life experiences had strengthened and developed those gifts.

You see, I have always been a good listener. For some reason, people have always felt more than comfortable revealing their most intimate problems in their lives to me. I never understood why complete strangers would open up and express their deepest pains and “storms” of life, while looking to me for some type of answer. Many times, I found myself overwhelmed with empathy, yet filled with sorrow because I was unable to provide answers or even point them in the right direction. When God finally revealed His plan for my life, I began to see the whole picture come together. God had a vision for my life… and it was in my moment of surrender that He gave me eyes to see.

God began to teach me how critical Scripture is to our lives; His Word has become the very breath that gives me life. His plan for me was to lead others to Jesus by simply providing them with Scriptures that would speak directly to their circumstances. It is in receiving God’s grace that we can live with confident hope—it is His Word that gives us the faith we need to receive that grace. It really is the Truth that sets us free and fills us with hope. His Word produces a faith in us that will never fail.

And so, to make a long story short, God revealed “ScriptureNow.com” to me. I can honestly tell you that it has been the greatest blessing in my life and in the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in over 30 countries around the world. I can’t imagine one day of my life going by without reaching out and sharing the Word of God to people in this way! And God did all of this in the midst of my raging storms of life.

This is where “Be Still” took on its purpose…as I have read the countless prayer requests through ScriptureNow.com, God spoke to me and showed me the miracle of “Jesus Calms the Storm” in a whole new light. This miracle goes to the heart of every single situation that we face in life, and I believe God filled me with the wisdom and insight to be able to write this book for you.

I hope that this book touches your heart and speaks to you through its message. I pray that you will always draw close to God, so that He can comfort, encourage, and rescue you through all of life’s storms. I pray that you will also visit me at: http://www.ScriptureNow.com and experience a great blessing in your life!

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Testimonies from ScriptureNow.com

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Oh, what a blessing…I am so thankful to God that I found your website. God speaks to me through you.

Thank you for your Scriptures, they seem to always come on time.

Thank you! It’s amazing how the Scriptures have gone in line with what I am dealing with!!

Thank you so much for your never ending help in my life. The Scriptures were helpful, powerful, and effective in my life.

You have helped save my life. My crisis is over and God gave me a miracle!

God bless you mightily for your compassionate ministry.

I don’t know how you knew, but this Scripture was exactly what I needed. Thank you!!!

Thank you. This is what I needed to hear!

Thank you for all of your prayers and love over this year and for being a safe place to call out to.

I can’t tell you just how much the daily Scriptures have blessed my heart.

You know, before I found out about ScriptureNow.com, I was not lost, but not headed in the right direction.

I will never be able to express the power I have experienced in the Scriptures that you send.

You will never fully understand how God has used your website to turn my life around and get me moving in the right direction.

I had lost all hope until I found your website, and now I am filled with a hope I have never felt before.

The nine Scriptures that you sent have given me nine days of strength. I had never experienced God speaking to me until now. Thank you for using His Word to help me hear Him.

I look so forward to receiving your Daily Scripture. It just seems as though God is speaking right through it!

You will never quite understand the impact your Ministry is having.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your prayers and your concerns. I don’t think I could have coped with the pressures I have found myself under if it would not have been for your caring and sending me Scripture and prayer. I now know that I will overcome through Christ!

May God richly bless you for the work you are doing for Him.

I’m wondering if this is really God’s email…the Scriptures you send speak so directly to me…that it must be.

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Introduction

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The Storm

Do you feel as though you’re in a raging storm? Storms of life flood your spirit with disillusionment, despair, and disappointment. The consuming waves of a storm in life can submerge your soul with agonizing fear. When you’re in a storm of life, it feels as though each breath might be your last. The ongoing destruction from the storm forces you to cling to anything and everything, in the hopes of somehow surviving it all. As the storm continues to rage, you suddenly realize that there’s no lifeboat—there’s no quick escape. You’re on your own. Usually, very quickly, the terror sets in; with it comes despair and hopelessness. The desperation that overcomes you, suddenly, becomes more than you can withstand. As the end seems to be drawing nearer, with each moment that passes, all you can do is stand by and watch it all unfold.

Our storms of life bring us to the point where we realize that we have nowhere to go, but to God. In a moment of overwhelming desperation, when we finally do call out to Him, we suddenly realize that our relationship with Him has grown cold. Through our cries for help, without stable ground to stand on, it’s anger that takes over and we shout, “Lord, don’t you care?”

We’ve all been there, at one time or another. If you haven’t experienced a storm in your life, then Praise God; but, get ready because Jesus assured us,

I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world. (John 16:33 NLT)

The Controversy of the Miracle

The miracle of “Jesus Calms the Storm” has been called one of the most controversial miracles that Jesus performed. Even today, we witness those who are pronounced dead…receive life again, blind who against all odds see, illnesses that are cured without explanation, and tragic accidents where miraculously people survive. We witness miracles every day and realize that they are from the power of something far greater than what we can comprehend.

Yet, even in the face of such miracles, we allow human reasoning to get the best of us. Doubt, more often than not, wins out. We end up walking by sight, instead of by faith. So, we wrestle with our faith, just as the Disciples did on the Sea of Galilee. The battle begins…within. How do we accept someone controlling the wind and the waves in a violent storm? Even if we want to believe, this kind of miracle pushes our faith a little farther than we’d like. This kind of faith presses us beyond our comfort zone.

We like to keep God in a box. We’re comfortable with Him in some things in our lives, but not others. We’re content in keeping Him where we’ve put Him…allowing Him out of the box is just too risky—we’re not sure what to expect from Him. We’re not convinced He’ll do things the way they should be done or in the timing that they should be done. We believe that it’s possible for Him to heal someone we’re praying for, but we’re just not certain that He can do anything in our situation. We’re convinced that there are just some things that God is either too busy to deal with, or He just really doesn’t care. It has been said that to ask God for help in “small things” is wasting His time—be assured, ALL things are small to God. He is looking to and fro the earth for someone to not only call out to Him, but to believe Him (2 Chronicles 16:9).

________________________

This miracle is for you

to understand the purpose

of the storms in your life and

how to persevere through them.

By applying this miracle

to your life,

you will find that God can

calm all of your storms . . .

if you will just have faith

that He can.

________________________

He is looking for your faith in the midst of your storms of life. He has allowed the storm, in an effort to increase your faith, by threatening to destroy it. Out of His great love for you, He calls out to you through your storm and asks, “Who do you say I am” (Matthew 16:15)? As your life is pushed to the edge, His voice calls down from heaven…demanding an answer. It is your answer that determines whether or not you will make it through the storm and if there will be anything left in the aftermath. It is your faith in God that makes all the difference. Trust Him, and cling to your faith…God ALWAYS keeps His Word.

According to your faith and trust and reliance [on the power invested in Me] be it done to you; (Matthew 9:29 AMP)

The miracle in the storm on the Sea of Galilee revealed the Disciples’ lack of faith in Jesus as the Son of God. Although they had witnessed Jesus perform many miracles, they still had doubt about who He really was. It was through this miracle that their faith was truly put to the test. The Disciples believed, just as most people did, that many miracles are understandably possible, but only God could control the wind and the waves. There was no doubt in their minds that this kind of power could only come from the hand of God. God’s desire is to move His hand in your storms, as well. He is looking for your faith.

What you must understand is that this miracle was not just a story of God’s awesome power—it was not just another miracle. This miracle was for you to understand the purpose of the storms in your life and how to persevere through them. By applying this miracle to your life, you will find that God can calm all of your storms…if you will just have faith that He can.

Storms Will Come

After receiving thousands of emails from people all over the world through the ScriptureNow.com Ministry, I might guess that your storms are a broken relationship, a shattered marriage, depression, despair over unsaved loved ones, job anxiety, unemployment, financial failure, an illness, death, or some unexpected tragedy. Maybe you feel that life in general is a raging storm. No matter how big or small your storm, you feel that no one seems to understand; you’re convinced that you’re in the boat alone. With each agonizing moment that passes, you feel that you’re one day closer to drowning; it seems as though nothing and no one can save you.

If you aren’t currently in a storm, be on the lookout. The enemy is looking for an opportunity to send the perfect storm into your life. He is well aware of our deepest desires and our innermost struggles. Satan not only attacks us where we are weakest; more often, he attacks in those areas where we feel we are strongest. He knows exactly where pride exists. He knows we won’t see an attack coming when we’re overly confident in a particular area of our lives. He knows those places in our lives where we’ve decided to play God and we’ve shut God out. He’s able to see any crack we leave in the door, and He feels more than comfortable letting himself in. The enemy is always at work, and he is more than willing to kick you while you’re down. He’s not particularly concerned about what’s going on in your life and whether or not the timing is convenient. He’s simply out to destroy your faith in God. The enemy’s attacks are deceitful and destructive—you won’t even see what’s coming. Just as in the miracle of Jesus Calms the Storm, many times, the storms of our lives will come from out of nowhere—unexpectedly.

How many times have we judged others and said, “I’d never do that. That could never happen to me…I’m too loving, too giving, too faithful, too loyal, too obedient, too prayerful, too dedicated to God. Besides, I go to church on Sunday!” Before we know it, we find ourselves in the midst of that very storm; we’re dazed and confused, wondering how we got there and how to get out.

The Storm Has Great Purpose

The Disciples were not exempt from a test of faith and neither are we. God’s purposes for them were so great, so critical to His plans, that He allowed a raging storm to take over their boat on the Sea of Galilee—bringing them to the edge of their faith. He increased their faith by asking them to step into a boat and risk it.

Faith isn’t faith, unless it requires taking a step into the unseen. It doesn’t take faith at all to cling to what you see. The faith that God is after is a faith that clings to Him and isn’t threatened or destroyed by adversity and uncertainty. You know that you have genuine faith when common sense tells you to stop believing, but you continue to trust God anyway. It’s all about your faith in God—don’t ever believe otherwise.

________________________

Faith isn’t faith,

unless it believes in the unseen.

It doesn’t take faith at all

to cling to what you see.

Faith in God trusts Him

even when you

can’t see the very next step

in front of you.

________________________

This unexpected storm tested these men, who considered themselves very skilled fishermen, so that their faith would be strengthened for the journey ahead. In their weakness, they realized they were helpless without their Savior. When Jesus performed the incredible miracle of calming the storm, it caused these expert fishermen, who had been through many storms on this Sea, to experience a storm that would bring them to the end of themselves. Although the Disciples were master fishermen, God took the area of the Disciples’ lives where they felt most confident… and tested them. God knew they needed to be brought to the end of their own abilities, so that they would trust in His.

________________________

Don’t be deceived,

God has allowed

the storm in your life . . .

with a plan to use it

ALL for your good

and HIS glory!

________________________

Rest assured, God is bringing you to your knees, so that you can witness His hand lift you up. The message that God needed the Disciples to understand was that it was by faith alone that they could be saved. It’s the message He wants you to know, as well. But people are declared righteous because of their faith, not because of their work (Romans 4:5 NLT). By sending the storm and testing them in it, God turned these men into the greatest witnesses for Christ that the world has ever known. Our storms will also come in those areas where we least expect them. Our pride will keep us from seeing the storms coming. It is in the areas where pride exists that Satan sees an easy target. Don’t be deceived…God allowed the storm in this miracle, and He’s allowing it in your life…with a plan to use it ALL for your good and His glory!

Then the Lord asked Satan, ‘Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth—a man of complete integrity. He fears God and will have nothing to do with evil.’ Satan replied to the Lord, ‘Yes, Job fears God, but not without good reason! You have always protected him and his home and his property from harm. You have made him prosperous in everything he does. Look how rich he is! But take away everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face!’ ‘Alright, you may test him,’ the Lord said to Satan. ‘Do whatever you want with everything he possesses, but don’t harm him physically.’ So Satan left the Lord’s presence. (Job 1:8-12 NLT)

Never doubt that there are spiritual conversations about you. Yes, you! You are known by name in the heavenly realms, and we know this from Isaiah 45:3 (NLT):

I am the Lord, the God of Israel,

the one who calls you by name.

You are no different than Job or the Disciples, in that, God will only allow those things which He knows will bring you closer to Him, give Him the glory, and make your heart more like His. It is imperative to truly understand that God will never give you more than you can withstand, and He will always make a way through your storms when you trust in Him.

But remember that the temptations that come into your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can’t stand up against it. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you will not give into it. (1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT)

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If God has allowed the storm,

He will make a way through it.

Be certain that God is only

allowing the storm

because He knows the

blessing behind it.

Through the storm,

God is giving you the opportunity

to experience, first hand,

His miraculous and sufficient

power in your life.

________________________

When you feel that God has allowed your storms, you should be comforted in just knowing that God alone is control of them. In your storms of life, your spirit can be quieted by grabbing hold of the Truth: If God has allowed a storm...He will make a way through it. He has assured you that He is with you always (Matthew 28:20). You should feel secure, in just knowing, that God has set the boundaries and perimeters of your storm—just as he did with Job. It should strengthen you to know that God is allowing this storm only because He knows the blessing behind it.

When God is at work in your life, you will often experience the miraculous and sufficient power of God in your storms…even more than in your times of great blessings. We can only truly appreciate the glory of being on the mountaintop when we’ve had to climb up from the valley. And the only way from one mountaintop to the next is through the valleys. It’s in the valley where the richest soil in the world is found…God knows what He’s doing when He’s growing your faith.

It is only through the storms that you will truly know the heart of God. In your storms, you’ve been given the opportunity to encounter God—the choice to accept His invitation is yours.

As long as we insist on being in control, God will not interfere. He will allow us to go our own way, until we come to a place of surrender. In order to experience God’s miracles in our lives, we must be willing to relinquish control, and let God be God.

Too often, instead of trusting in God’s sovereign purpose in our storms, many of us feel anger. We feel like God allowed us to walk into the storm or that He even led us right into it.

________________________

Jesus performs many miracles

in our storms of life—

showing us that He

is ALL we need,

when there is a need,

is just one of them.

________________________

We’re convinced that He could have spared us the pain and suffering. Understanding the purpose of your storms will help you persevere through them and bring you closer to God, instead of casting your soul deeper into despair by allowing your heart to become hardened in your distress.

In all this, Job did not sin

by blaming God.

(Job 1:22 NLT)

(If you have not read the book of Job…I challenge you to do so and understand what it truly means to have faith in God through the most tragic storms of life.)

Why A Storm?

We live in a world filled with anxiety and tremendous uncertainty. Each and every day we are confronted by stories that shake the foundation of our faith—to a point of near destruction. If we, personally, aren’t facing unthinkable trials and tragedies, we worry about friends and family members who are facing the unconceivable. Or we become fearful of what lies ahead in our lives.

We wonder what good could possibly come from such overwhelming anxiety and fear. But, it’s in the worst of times that we find the most opportune moment to re–examine our lives. What have we taken for granted? What are our morals and values? On what have we built our foundation and will it be able to withstand the storms in our lives? In the storms of life, we have two choices: we can reaffirm the faith we embraced when we accepted Christ into our life, or we can walk away. For those who have never known Jesus, these times of suffering are an opportunity for the heart to be opened and the need for God to surface. God is at work, even when we are unaware. The storms convince us that we’re lost and in need of help. In our desperation, we realize that we need a “compass.”

When you’re holding a compass, you can turn your feet in any direction, but the arrow of the compass will faithfully point to Magnetic North. If you should ever become lost, the compass will give you an indication of where you are and where you’re going. In life, “North” is Christ. We may take a path that leads us in the “world’s” direction and we might get lost along the way; but, when we turn to Christ, He realigns our lives in the direction of God’s will. Jesus performs many miracles in our storms of life—showing us that He is all that we need, when there is a need, is just one of them.

Whether you’re a person of faith right now, or a person still questioning and seeking answers, it’s likely that you’re open–minded to miracles. If you don’t need a miracle right now, you probably know someone who does. You see, God does extraordinary things for ordinary people. He loves to surprise us with His goodness and His power, in order to help us in our most desperate times. He can do anything. But, in the storms of your life, He wants you to know His presence, so that as you wait for His perfect timing, you can be filled with hope. He wants you to find security and peace in His care; He wants you trusting that He is mighty to save (Zephaniah 3:17).

If you want to find an extraordinary miracle in the life of an ordinary man, you need to look no further than to Moses. Moses was traveling in the desert when God spoke to him through a burning bush. (If you want to get an amazing glimpse of God’s awesome power, you should make it a priority to read through the book of Exodus.) God caught Moses off-guard, in the middle of the desert, through a burning bush. His encounter with God was life–altering. This miracle enabled Moses to walk forward in faith, trusting God, because he could not deny such a supernatural occurrence. Moses was able to walk through even greater adversity along his journey because with each step of faith that he took…God strengthened his faith through one miracle after another.

________________________

God wants to give you a miracle

in your storm,

but it’s less about the actual

miracle and more

about your personal encounter

with Him.

He wants to give you

a persevering faith

that will see you

through the journey.

________________________

God used a burning bush to initially get Moses’ attention; then, when Moses came to examine the bush further, God called out his name. (In our storms of life…God calls out our name, too. He wants our undivided attention.) As Moses drew even closer to God, God stopped him and told him to take off his shoes because he was standing on holy ground. He wanted Moses to know that he was in the presence of Almighty God. He wanted him to remember that moment forever. That event is now remembered thousands of years later—God’s miracle made its mark on history.

In this particular miracle, God didn’t stop with a burning bush. He goes on to tell Moses that He has heard the cries of His people in their suffering, and He has come down to save them. In your storms of life, God wants to step in and give you a miracle, too. But, it’s less about the actual miracle and more about your encounter with Him. He wants to give you the faith that will see you through the storms of your life that are yet to come. And they will come.

The poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning once, famously, wrote that “Earth is crammed full of heaven, and every common bush aglow with God. Those who see…take off their shoes.” God wants to bring you to a place of “taking off your shoes.”

________________________

Rest assured that God

can perform miracles

in your life, in your storms,

just as He did when He calmed

the Sea of Galilee.

The question is,

“Do YOU believe He can?”

________________________

This miracle on the Sea of Galilee, this storm, was preparing the Disciples’ faith for the journey ahead. It was the storm that would bring them to their knees and really get their attention. God also knows exactly what storms you and I will need to go through, in order to draw us closer to Him. Our storms come with an objective that is far more significant than our present need for comfort. God is doing us a favor by bringing us to a place of forfeiting all of our expectations in our lives, so that we will embrace His. Your storms can create the greatest intimacy between yourself and God. There is nothing more awesome. When you’re walking with God, the emptiness and loneliness that daily consumes your soul is filled with a joy that overflows and a peace that is beyond all understanding.

________________________

Our storms come

with an objective that is far

more significant than

our present need for comfort.

God is doing us a favor,

by bringing us to a place

of forfeiting our will in our lives,

so that we will embrace His.

________________________

This miracle was not just for the Disciples—it was for you. You will experience a miracle in your life, if you will understand how significant the storms of your life are to your faith. You must realize that God can do ANYTHING—He can calm the storm. But, what He really wants to do is use your life for His purposes—something far greater than anything you could dare ask for or imagine (Ephesians 3:20). He wants to give you something far more fulfilling than you could ever desire.

It should be encouraging to know that if God could take these few ordinary men and use this storm to change the world forever through their testimony . . . He can use your storms for His glory, too.

Yes, God wants to use you. Rest assured He can perform miracles in your life, in your storms, just as He did when He calmed the Sea of Galilee. The question is, “Do you believe He can?”

Then Jesus told him, ‘You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who haven’t seen me and believe anyway.’ (John 20:29 NLT)

What do you mean, 'If I can'?" Jesus asked. "Anything is possible if a person believes. (Mark 9:23 NLT)

God intends to perform a miracle in your life and not have you say, “How did He do that?” Instead, He wants for you to have the same experience as the Disciples of Jesus had—it was in their awe and amazement that they asked, “Who is this man, that even the winds and waves obey him?”

And they were filled with awe amazement. They said to one another ‘Who is this man, that even the winds and waves obey him’ (Luke 8:25 NLT)?

________________________

God is strengthening our faith

in the storms of our lives,

and He wants us to get

the message loud and clear—

our faith is not strengthened by

striving after it,

but by resting in Him—

the Faithful One.

________________________

God desires for you to be in such awe and amazement of His power that you are less concerned about how He did it, but rather, who it is that did it! We beg and beg for miracles in our lives, constantly wondering why God won’t do something; yet, when He does, He mystifies us even more. It’s our heart He’s after, and He’s more than willing to bring about a miracle in your life in order to capture it. His miracle for you is that you will not be overcome by your storms, but that you will know Who to come to when your storms emerge. He’s strengthening your faith in Him through the storms. He wants us to get the message loud and clear: our faith is not strengthened by striving after it, but by resting in Him, the Faithful One.

Just as in the Sea of Galilee, God knows our storms often come from out of nowhere. He’s well aware that when they do…we are likely to go into shear panic. His miracle for you, in the storm, is that you can be at rest with Him through your faith.

________________________

God knows what He’s doing.

Let the storms come,

and let the waters rise—

God is taking you deeper.

________________________

We look at the storms of our lives and too often, ask, “If God is so loving, why does He allow pain and suffering in my life? What have I done to deserve being a victim in this circumstance? Why do I need to go through this storm? Why can’t He just take me around it? I want out and NOW!” The truth is, God knows us…He knows what it will take to bring us to our knees. It is upon our knees where we learn to walk by faith and receive the peace that only He can provide when storms arise. Remember this clearly: ANYTHING that drops us to our knees and brings us to the foot of the Cross is GOOD for us. In our moments of complete brokenness, when the flesh is weak, but the spirit is willing (Matthew 26:41), He wants us to know: In Jesus we will find confident patience, strength, endurance, and peace.

God knows exactly what we need, in order to make it through this journey of life. At times, our journey will take us into unfamiliar, intimidating, territory…which may be exactly where God wants us, so that He can perform His greatest work in our lives. If we go back to the book of Exodus, and the life of Moses, we find that when Pharaoh finally let the people go, God did not lead them along the main road that ran through the territory—even though that was the shortest route to the Promised Land. Here’s what He said, ‘If the people are faced with a battle, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.’ So God led them in a round-about way through the wilderness toward the Red Sea (Exodus 13:17-18 NLT). You see, God may have led them the long way, but He was preparing an even greater miracle than Him rescuing them.

You might be tempted to believe that God doesn’t know what He’s doing—that He’s causing you to endure unnecessary pain and suffering. But, rest assured, God knows exactly what He’s doing. Let the storms come, and let the waters rise—God is taking you deeper.

God knows that this won’t be the last storm you will encounter in your life. It’s a fallen world; He wants to build your faith in Him, so when the sea rages and the storm clouds begin closing in…you will find peace in Him.

Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7 NLT)

Faith Can Calm the Storm

Through God’s Word, we are assured that He can calm the “external” storm; but, the storm He really wants to calm is the one inside of you—the “internal” storm. Ask yourself, while reading through this miracle, “Was Jesus just simply telling the wind and the waves, “Peace! Be Still!”? Or was there a deeper message?” Jesus was speaking to YOU in this miracle. You see, it took no effort at all for Jesus to calm the external, physical, storm. It was much more important for Him to teach us how to calm the storm within us—the “spiritual” storm. When you learn how to calm the storm within, through your faith in God, the wind and the waves may be threatening to take you under, but you will find yourself in the eye of the storm…at peace.

________________________

God wants you

in the back of the boat with Jesus—

a place of peace and rest.

He wants you to “Be Still”;

yet, we find that “being still”

requires action . . .

it demands your faith.

________________________

We can look at a hurricane as being symbolic to our storms of life. Hurricanes have a distinctive feature called an “eye.” The eye of a hurricane is in the middle of the spiral of the storm. The eye is produced by the spiraling action of the storm, and it is the area where the air is slowly sinking. When the eye of a hurricane passes over an area, the winds decrease to a gentle breeze and the rain stops. In the eye of the hurricane, you may even be able to see the sun during the day or the stars out at night. Then, as the rest of the storm passes and the wind suddenly changes directions, the storm becomes ferocious again.

God wants you to be in the eye of your storms in life. In the eye, He knows that you will be able to see the light of day and enjoy the beauty of the stars at night. In the eye of storm, the winds and waters may rage around you, but you will be experiencing peace in the midst of it. God has given us His Word, the Scriptures, to keep us from being overcome by the most powerful winds that reside just outside the eye wall of the storm.

Understanding the miracle of “Jesus Calms the Storm” makes us certain of one thing: whatever the storm is, however fierce, and however the storm came about, God can calm it. The question is, “Will you have faith that God can calm your storm?” The lesson in this fantastic miracle of “Jesus Calms the Storm” is to have confident faith in God, and get to the back of the boat with Jesus—a place of peace and rest. What we also learn through this miracle is that “Being Still,” actually, requires action. Let the miracle of Jesus calming the storm increase your faith and bring about a miracle in your life, by teaching you to “Be Still.”

NOTE TO READER: I encourage you to go through this book and highlight the Scriptures. When you only have a moment, skim through the book and be encouraged!

Also, don’t miss the section in the back of this book,

“God’s Word On…” Use the section as a reference to God’s Promises that will encourage your faith through all your storms of life.

.

Chapter 1

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Purpose in the Storm

Jesus Calms the Storm

On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be Still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith? (Mark 4:35-40 ESV)

Then Jesus asked, “Where is your faith?” And they were filled with awe and amazement. They said to one another, “Who is this man, that even the winds and waves obey him?”(Luke 8:25 NLT)

In order to understand the miracle of “Jesus Calms the Storm,” we must first understand the power of the sea; what its power represented then and now. According to the Gospels, Jesus’ ministry was centered around the Sea of Galilee. While many important events occurred in Jerusalem, Jesus spent most of His ministry along the shore of this freshwater lake. It was there that Jesus gave more than half of His parables and where He performed most of His miracles.

The Sea of Galilee was known for its sudden, violent storms. When it raged, the threat of drowning among fisherman was all too real. The Sea of Galilee is unique in that it is seven hundred feet below sea level, making it the lowest freshwater lake on the earth. At its widest point, the lake measures thirteen miles from north to south and seven and a half miles from east to west. Its deepest point is estimated at around two hundred feet.

________________________

Never forget that

God is in control.

The question is,

“When a storm arises,

will you cry out

to the only One

who can help you?”

________________________

The Sea’s location was significant because it made the Sea susceptible to the sudden and violent storms. The storms would often develop when an east wind dropped cool air over the warm air rising from the Sea. This change produced well known furious storms, without warning.

The word “sea,” in Hebrew, comes from the name of the evil god in the Babylonian creation story. It meant “evil” and “a mysterious and threatening force opposed to God.” When Hebrews wanted to declare God’s authority, they spoke of His power over the sea. In Psalms 89:9 (NKJV), the Psalmist said,

You rule the raging of the sea,

when its waves rise, you still them.

In Psalm 107:23-30 (NLT), we not only find a prophecy of “Jesus Calms the Storm,” but an acknowledgement of God’s power over the storms.

Some went off in ships, plying the trade routes of the world. They too, observed the Lord’s power in action, his impressive works on the deepest seas. He spoke, and the winds rose, stirring up the waves. Their ships were tossed to the heavens and sank again to the depths; the sailors cringed in terror. They reeled and staggered like drunkards and were at wits’ end. “Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. He calmed the storm to a whisper and stilled the waves. What a blessing was that stillness as he brought them safely into the harbor!

As powerful as storms were and still are today, God is acknowledged to have power over them all. Never forget this truth in your own life: God is in control. The question is, “When a storm arises, will you cry out to the One who can help you?”

It was known that storms on this Sea could arise from nowhere; so, since Jesus was the Son of God, one might think that surely He knew there would be a great storm on this venture across the Sea. And if this were so, why did He choose to take His Disciples into it? You would almost expect, since Jesus was with the Disciples on this trip across the Sea, they would be free from worry. We can be certain they didn’t expect to encounter a raging storm that they may have experienced on many other trips.

Certainly, the Disciples who gave up everything in life and obediently followed Jesus would be protected from harm’s way. They might even expect that this would be the most wonderful venture across the Sea that they had ever experienced. They more than likely found confidence in their commitment to Jesus and felt secure in His ability to protect them. They loved Jesus, believed in Him, and left behind everything in life to follow Him; yet, the Disciples’ devotion did nothing to protect them from the terror of this storm.

In the Boat

Many times, we as Christians feel the same way the Disciples did…when we become a Christian and accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, shouldn’t we be protected? We, understandably, assume that life should be “easier”; we feel certain that we should instantly have a closer relationship with God. We can falsely believe that we no longer have to endure “storms” in our lives. But, then, suddenly, one day, in one moment in time, we’re faced with the painful truth—it’s not the way it works. Our false expectations can create a storm in and of itself. When life doesn’t happen just as we think it should, the winds start roaring and the storm clouds look ferocious. Our faith can begin to fail amidst the overwhelming atmosphere of doubt and despair.

________________________

Jesus didn’t come

to get you out of the storms

of your life,

He came to take you

through them.

________________________

When we make a stand in our faith, when we decide to get in the boat with Jesus, Satan unleashes his rage against us. We are now “officially” his enemy, and the true battle has begun. Shockingly, as we take each step of faith, our storms seem to actually come more often than before we believed!

When we’re faced with the storms that we must endure, when walking with God, we find ourselves in the midst of our storm crying out, “Why is this happening to me? If You’re a God of love, why all this pain? Why do the innocent suffer? If You’re a God of order, why all the chaos? If You’re so powerful, why do You seem so incapable? By the way, where are You?” It is at this time that we need to be reminded of the Truth: Jesus told us in John 16:33 (NLT),

“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

When you’re in the boat with Jesus, the answers to your questions come in many unexpected ways. Sometimes, they come by way of a storm that threatens to take you under. You see, instead of presenting just an “ordinary” trial with an “ordinary storm,” the storm in this miracle would be like no other. This storm would threaten to take the Disciples’ very lives. This storm would ultimately test their faith. This miracle would cause the Disciples to ask, “Who is this man?”

________________________

In the storms of your life,

God is always at work—

drawing you closer

to Him and weaving

all of your paths

into His purposes.

________________________

It’s interesting that the most violent storm these fishermen had ever experienced was when Jesus, the Son of God, was in the boat with them. It should be comforting to know that in the most violent storms of your life…Jesus is in the boat with you, too.  Understanding the storms of your life is realizing that although the waves may start crashing in on you…Jesus is with you. More importantly, you must be assured through His Word: He will not allow you to perish, if you will acknowledge His presence in your life and call out His name. Surely, your boat cannot go down with the Son of God in it! Don’t be deceived, Jesus didn’t come to get you out of the storms in your life—He came to take you through them.

________________________

Although we may not

particularly like some of

the paths on our journey,

the destination of a

closer relationship with God

is worth all the storms

we may have to go through.

________________________

You see, God knew that the Disciples needed to go from “here” to “there,” in order to experience the miracle. He needed to take them from “here” to “there” in their faith—it’s no different in our own lives. God wants to take us from “here,” in our faith, and bring us “there”—a place of walking in greater faith for the journey ahead. When you take a journey with Jesus, it’s like nothing you’ve ever experienced. It’s simply not of this world. When you’re walking with Jesus, you’re taking a supernatural, spiritual, journey where He prepares you to live eternally.

Although we may not particularly like some of the paths on our journey…the destination of a closer relationship with God is worth all the storms we may have to endure. If you’re following Jesus, you know where you’re going—He’s assured you of the destination. It’s all about the journey getting there. He’ll take you step by step because He doesn’t want you to miss a thing.

I have refined you but not in the way silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering.I will rescue you for my sake-yes, for my own sake! (Isaiah 48:10 NLT)

It is often asked, “Was this the miracle of God calming the storm in the Sea or the miracle of Jesus teaching us how to calm the storm inside of us?” Jesus knew His Disciples’ hearts, just like He knows your heart and mine.

O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my every thought when far away. You chart the path ahead of me and tell me where to stop and rest. Every moment you know where I am. You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord. You both precede and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. (Psalm 139:2 NLT)

As God lovingly allows us to venture into the storms of our lives, He is always at work—drawing us closer and closer to Him while weaving all our paths into His purposes. If you’re trusting in God, you can’t just look at your circumstances and think that is all there is to it. They are a parallel to something deeper and more important concerning the spirit within you.

________________________

Your storms of life

are a parallel to something

deeper concerning

the spirit within you.

God knows your deeper need—

to develop a faith

that glorifies Him.

________________________

In the storms of our lives, God will show us that we have a deeper need. We need to develop the faith that glorifies Him. We must recognize that we are in the hands of a loving Father who has put us right where we need to be, in order to teach us His ways and His will.

The answers for the storms in our lives come through the still small voice of God saying, “I will not let you go down. You have no reason to despair. Rest in My Word. I am with you always.” Through His Word, He assures us that He has everything under control, and there is no reason to fear. In the words of an old Hymn,

Day by day and with each passing moment, Strength I find to meet my trials here; Trusting in my Father's wise bestowment, I've no cause for worry or for fear.

If we want to understand God’s purpose in the storm, we must learn that God has allowed the storms in our lives out of love and wisdom. God designed life to be full of the unexpected, so that we will constantly be reminded that we’re not in control.

Satan fills us with the lies that we are our own gods, we are in charge, we can plan, and we can direct our future; to the degree that God has given us free will, there is some truth to that. But, the devil distorts it and leads us to believe that we can control everything. As hard as we might try…we can’t. Jesus himself reminded us,

I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; (John 5:19 NIV)

Before Jesus’ crucifixion, Pilate asked Jesus, “Don’t you realize I have the power either to free you or to crucify you?” Jesus’ answer was simple, revealing, and full of Truth…“You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above” (John 19:11 NIV).

Regardless of what storm we’re facing in life, we can never forget the simple truth: God is in charge. As difficult as it is for us to understand, God’s will in our lives has far greater purposes than we can imagine; yet, all of them are designed for greater good. We must face the Truth that says God is ultimately in control.

In understanding God’s ways, we cannot decide to heartily accept some Truths, yet readily discount others. We must accept God’s ways and trust in them; it’s a decision we make that isn’t based upon our desires or emotions. We walk by faith in our loving God. Take a moment to really grasp the following truth in Romans 9: 15-19 (NIV):

For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion." It does not, therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: "I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth." Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden. One of you will say to me: "Then why does God still blame us? For who resists his will?" But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? "Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?' "Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some for common use?”

Even though our storms may come filled with pain and suffering, we are to clearly understand that they come from a loving God…and we must praise Him…in the storm.

Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad? (Job 2:10 NLT)

An unknown poet expressed the depths of God’s work in and through us in this way:

When God wants to drill a man,

And thrill a man,

And skill a man;

When God wants to mold a man

To play the noblest part,

Then he yearns with all his heart

To create so great and bold a man

That all the world shall be amazed,

Watch his methods, watch his ways—

How he ruthlessly perfects

Whom he royally elects.

How he hammers him and hurts him,

And with mighty blows, converts him

Into trial shapes of clay

Which only God understands.

While his tortured heart is crying,

And he lifts beseeching hands.

How he bends but never breaks

When his good he undertakes.

How he uses Whom he chooses,

And with every purpose, fuses him,

By every act, induces him

To try his splendor out.

God knows what he's about.

(We need to fully grasp what this poet did, God is at work, He has a purpose, and He knows what He’s doing.)

One of God’s primary purposes for our storms that we can understand is: He wants to conform us into the likeness of Christ.

________________________

God is not with you to keep

the storms from coming . . .

He’s with you

to take you through them.

________________________

For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. (Romans 8:29 NIV)

He is molding us, so that our character mirrors that of Jesus: the way He thinks, loves, and forgives. Through the process, He is teaching us to depend on His presence, instead of relying on our own strength. We are to draw all of our strength from Him.

I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5 NIV)

As God works on our character, He uses our suffering to teach us to keep focused upon Him. God’s incredible love for us does not eliminate the pain, suffering, and heartache that we might go through; but, His Promises assure us that He is with us, and He is using it all for good. (Romans 8:28) Through it all, we learn to trust that no matter how devastating the storm might be…God is with us. And if we trust and obey Him, He will strengthen us and fill us with hope in the midst of the storm.

We do not know what to do,

but our eyes are upon you.

(2 Chronicles 20:12 NIV)

You see, His presence is made perfect in your weakness; it is in your weakest moments where He will comfort you, strengthen you, and reassure you of His faithfulness. He wants you to know that He is not in your life to stop the storms from coming, but to take you through them. He wants your faith.

And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. (Hebrews 11:6 NLT)

God’s Presence in the Storm

We can be certain that God would never test our faith and then push us out to sea without His presence. The question is, “Do you acknowledge His presence during these storms of life?” The even greater question is, “At what point do you acknowledge His presence?” We storm the gates of heaven, wondering, “Where is God?” Yet, we fail to see that He is there with us… and He’s been there all along. In fact, He’s in the clouds—He’s hovering over us each day, going before us, preparing a way through the storm.

The cloud of the Lord was over them by day when they set out from the camp. (Numbers 10:34 NIV)

They have heard that You, O Lord, are in the midst of this people, for You, O Lord, are seen eye to eye, while Your cloud stands over them; and You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. (Numbers 14:14 NASB)

Just think about the fact that the Disciples were in a boat, with who they supposedly believed was the Son of God; yet, even they failed to acknowledge Him, until it was almost too late. They were about to die! Why didn’t it occur to them to ask for Jesus’ help sooner? From the outside looking in, the answer seemed so obvious. In our own storms of life, it’s often difficult to see the “obvious.” Our vision becomes clouded with debilitating doubt and paralyzing fear.

________________________

You can’t allow your vision

to become clouded

with doubt and fear.

Don’t lose sight of the fact

that God is with you always . . .

He’s been with you all along.

________________________

The Disciples had seen Jesus perform many miracles—we have seen God work miracles in our own lives, yet we so easily forget them. Jesus says, “Don’t you remember”(Matthew 16:9)? If they had faith in Him, the answer would be obvious—ask the Son of God to calm the storm! But they didn’t. God knew that the Disciples’ faith would grow through this experience. Their greater faith would enable them to be better witnesses. The miracles He performed were to teach us to have faith in Him, regardless of our circumstances—no matter how impossible things might seem.

________________________

Hear this truth:

“You don’t have to save yourself.”

(Besides, you can’t!)

Jesus came so that

you don’t have to . . .

He’s the one who saves you

through every storm of life.

He is all you need.

________________________

God reminds us through His Word:

Everything is possible

for him who believes.

(Mark 9:23 NIV)

Have faith in God. (Mark 11:22 NIV)

The message God has for you is no different than it was for the Disciples. He wants you to know that faith in Him can bring about miracles in your life.

Many of us believe that miracles won’t happen to us. Or maybe we’re like the Disciples and we think that we have the ability to make it through this storm on our own. But, when we can’t seem to rescue ourselves, we finally, as a last ditch effort, ask for God’s help. Hear this truth: “You don’t have to save yourself.” (Besides, you can’t!) Jesus came so that you don’t have to…He’s the one who saves you through every storm of life. He is all you need.

________________________

When miracles happen,

hope destroys hopelessness,

joy overcomes pain,

love conquers hate,

and faith finds God

in the midst of it all.

________________________

We tend to wait until the last moment because we seem to think that God can’t possibly intervene in our situation. How much peace do we forfeit by struggling for the answers on our own? How much pain do we needlessly bear because we agonize over possibilities that never happen? We tend to believe that there are some things that God can handle, but we’re convinced that on many things…He needs our help. At other times, we’re certain that it’s necessary for us to take control…God just seems to be taking too long. Even the Disciples, at some point, subconsciously believed that there was nothing that Jesus could do to help them calm the wind and waves of the storm. It was the perfect set up for the perfect miracle. God knows what He’s doing.

________________________

Our faith should never

be surprised to see God

when He shows up.

________________________

In the storm, He’s bringing us to a place of embracing the truth that our life is better managed by His hands, not our own. Trust Him—He does a much better job than we could ever do.

In the face of impossible circumstances, God says, “Lift up your eyes. Look beyond the visible realities.” God doesn’t work in the “natural.” He works in the “supernatural.” His only requirement is that we no longer be “unbelieving,” but “believing.” He says, “Believe and have faith that I am at work, and I will enrich your life beyond your imagination.” Do you dare believe God? When miracles happen, hope destroys hopelessness, joy overcomes pain, love conquers hate, and faith finds God in the midst of it all…ever present…worthy of praise.

Who doesn’t want a miracle? Who doesn’t want to be saved from the paralyzing grip of fear? We beg God for a miracle, but when He shows up, we’re often found with very little faith—we’re like the Disciples, standing in awe and amazement. Our faith should never be surprised to see God’s hand, when we’ve come to a place of surrender.

In our world, becoming mature means becoming “independent.” In our spiritual journey, maturity means becoming helplessly dependent upon God. Our peace in the storm can only come from our resignation into God’s hands. Regardless of how hopeless a situation might seem, we must surrender all of our hopes and expectations into His hands; when we do, we find that He will empower us to endure any hardship. His desire is that we would continue the journey without fear or anxiety, while trusting in His care. The more resigned we are to God’s care, the less power our circumstances have over us. When we’re resigned to God’s care, we won’t be frightened by undesirable news, and we won’t be trying to constantly figure out the next step. If we have faith in God, we will simply trust, wait, and expect God.

Such people will not be overcome by evil. Those who are righteous will be long remembered. They do not fear bad news; they confidently trust the Lord to care for them. They are confident and fearless and can face their foes triumphantly. (Psalm 112:6-8 NLT)

Quite possibly, you’re not sure that you want to take that step. You might feel that “trusting God” comes with too much obligation. You might decide that you don’t want to feel a burden of having to “repay” God for His miracle in your life. You may desire His hand, but you’re not sure about coming face to face with Him (Job 23:15). You may be overwhelmed in feeling that you would be in debt to Him and you don’t want to carry that weight. The truth is that you’re already in deeper debt to Him than you’ll ever imagine; that’s why He sent Jesus. Jesus can save you. It’s the storms of your life that bring you to a place of surrender. God wants you to stop all of your “trying” and simply start “trusting.” He wants to eliminate the fleshly part of you that wants to control your life. He wants you to encounter something much more wonderful than anything you could devise. When you truly understand your storms of life, you will find that your storms will allow God to lift you up and give you true life to the full…until it overflows. It’s possible that if we never had to face our storms of life, we wouldn’t seek the Lord. The purpose of your storm, simply put, is all about your relationship with Jesus. It’s all out your faith in Him.

In John Ortberg’s book, “Faith and Doubt,” he defines our faith and hope by saying that, “Hope points to one Man, one hope, one God who is worth trusting, not because of who He is. He is the one in whom and by whom we can hope.” Faith looks Jesus in the eyes and says, “Yes Lord, wherever You lead…I will follow.” We can trust that if He leads us into a raging storm, or allows a storm to come into our lives, He’s got something amazing in mind. He wants to show you His sufficiency, His comforting presence, and His strength that will help you endure. Your trials become tools in the hand of God. Tell Him you’ll follow Him—then watch Him go to work.

Then Jesus said to the Disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross and follow me. If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for me, you will find true life.” (Mark 8:34-35 NLT)

When you bow down before the Lord and admit your dependence on him, he will lift you up and give you honor. (James 4:10 NLT)

The Call of the Storm

Storms of life are used by God to strengthen your faith in Him. He’s asking you to step out in faith and show Him that you are ready to live with Him forever.

________________________

God doesn’t ask us to

“blindly” trust Him.

He reveals Himself

through Scripture and

in our experiences

to convince us that He

is fully trustworthy.

________________________

The storms call us to a higher place—they prove our faith and mature us spiritually. God may or may not have sent the storm into our life, but we can rest assured that He is with us through it all. The more we trust Him, the more our faith will grow. Placing our trust in Him will make all the difference for the journey.

Don’t make the mistake of basing your faith on a particular outcome. We’ve all done it. We’ve prayed for God to answer our prayers with very detailed expectations, and we’ve seen our faith crumble to pieces when things didn’t happen the way we thought they should.

________________________

Your storms of life will reveal,

refine, strengthen,

and perfect those areas

that are hindering

your spiritual growth.

________________________

We find ourselves embracing “positive thinking,” instead of real faith. Faith that grows us trusts in “Someone” rather than “something.” Faith trusts in the character of God who is merciful, loving, and just. God doesn’t ask us to “blindly” trust Him. He reveals Himself through Scripture and through our experiences to convince us that He is trustworthy.

The call of the storms in your life is to have greater faith in God. Your circumstances might look hopeless, you may have cried out to God for help, and you may have only heard a deafening silence; but, in your moments of abandoning all hope, you will find yourself in awe and amazement when you witness the power of God in your life. Your momentary pain and suffering will vanish, in an instant, when you open your soul to the risks of faith. Faith in God will bring you to the edge…every time. Each step of faith will demand that you reach out for the hand of God. He wants you to be a witness to His awesome presence and power.

The call of the storm in the Disciples’ lives caused them to be devoted witnesses to Christ because they experienced a “personal” miracle through the magnificent power of God—Jesus calmed their storm…He saved their lives.

Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who haven’t seen me and believe anyway.” (John 20:29 NLT)

When trying to understand how this miracle relates to your life and the storms you face, it is important to realize that the storm did not slowly subside or die down: when the Disciples cried out to Jesus for help—it stopped immediately! It appears that from that moment on, the Disciples were overwhelmed, not only with the power that Jesus possessed, but that He truly must be the Son of God. When the Disciples witnessed this great miracle, they were suddenly overcome by its “stillness.” Imagine being more frightened of how your storm of life is “stilled,” rather than of the fear of the raging storm itself!

________________________

Faith in God will bring you

to the edge . . .

every time.

Each step of faith you take

will demand that you

reach out for the hand of God . . .

make sure you take it

and never let go.

________________________

Can you imagine? Whatever storm you’re currently in, God can stop it immediately. When we call upon the name of Jesus, He does hear us; He will answer us through the storm. Will you call upon Him now? Will you show Him your faith in Him and cry out to Him even when you cannot see Him? Or will you keep trying to bail water out of a boat that is already capsizing?

The Disciples were truly the closest men to the Son of God; yet, at the end of this miracle we see that even they had doubts in their heart about who Jesus really was. They saw with their own eyes all of the miracles He performed, but they still asked, “Who is this man?” A little surprising…don’t you think? Onlookers may have believed that the Disciples must have had the highest level of faith—they left their lives and followed Jesus. But, Jesus knew where their faith was lacking. Jesus saw their heart…just like He sees yours. You cannot hide your heart from God.

It is in our storms where the areas of our lives that are hindering our spiritual growth are revealed. It is in the storms that God will reveal, refine, strengthen, and perfect those areas…if you allow Him to take you through the storm.

________________________

Behind every storm

there is a blessing.

View your storm

as a revelation from God,

an opportunity to learn

to trust Him,

and a stepping stone

for better things

in the future.

________________________

You can trust God. He already knows exactly what He’s going to do in your situation. He has a plan. He wants you to place your trust in Him by saying, “You are God, and nothing is impossible with You. I am giving this situation to You and it is no longer mine but yours to deal with as You will. “He’s taking your faith to a place of understanding His desire and ability to work a miracle for you—not only in your current storm, but in every storm you will ever face. His desire is that you would develop an unwavering faith that is anchored in Him.

Trust in, lean on, rely on, and have confidence in Him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts before Him. God is a refuge for us (a fortress and a high tower). Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]! (Psalm 62:8 AMP)

The Blessing Behind the Storm

It should be comforting to know that although God allows the storm, Jesus is in the boat with you. Yes, He is with you, right now, in the boat where you sit in the midst of your storm. The difference is: He is in the stern resting because He knows the blessing behind all of the wind and rain. He knows that the destruction in your life can be used to rebuild your life and make it better than it was before. He knows that God has the power to turn your ashes to beauty.

To all who mourn in Israel, he will give beauty for ashes, joy instead of mourning, praise instead of despair. For the Lord has planted them strong and graceful oaks for his own glory. (Isaiah 61:3 NLT)

There is no storm that is not permitted and controlled by God. When Jesus rose from the dead, He overcame every spirit in opposition to Him. By His resurrection, Jesus proclaimed power over all demonic forces in your life. This means that whatever your storm is, God has allowed it, and it has been overcome through Christ—just knowing this should bring about a great blessing in your spirit. Behind every storm there is a blessing—God has assured us there is one. Why not view this time as a revelation from God, an opportunity to learn to trust Him, and a stepping stone to better things in the future. He’s assured us:

God blesses the people who patiently endure testing. (James 1:12 NLT)

For the Disciples, their blessing was acquiring greater faith in God which made them the greatest witnesses for Christ—what a blessing for you and I! When God allows a storm in your life… it has great purpose; if you miss the purpose, you may miss God’s will for your life.

________________________

God has assured us that there

is a blessing behind every storm.

When God allows a storm

in your life . . .

it has great purpose;

if you miss the purpose,

you may miss God’s will

for your life.

________________________

Every intimate part of our lives is no surprise to God. Many times, when He leads us into the storms, He’s leading us to a place of surrender and complete dependence upon Him. The storms aren’t necessarily to show us His incredible powers; although His love, mercy, and grace continually amaze even those with incredible faith. God doesn’t have to prove His power, just as He doesn’t have to prove His existence—it’s the obvious. We just have to open our lives and look around us. We don’t have to go very far to realize there is an amazing God who keeps the world in motion, and He has addressed every intricate detail which sustains life here on earth.

________________________

Your storms are more than just

the pain and suffering

on the surface.

Your storms are tools

in the hand of God—

He’s working to bring

about miracles in your life.

________________________

God is more interested in showing us the heart of who He is. God wants us to understand that our storms are more than just storms. They are more than just the pain and suffering on the surface. Our storms build a bridge to an intimate relationship with Him. The storms just give God another opportunity to demonstrate His unconditional love for us.

He wants you to understand, firsthand, what it feels like to reach out and have His hand grasp yours. He wants you to understand what it’s like to see His face and hear His voice. No one and nothing can simply give you this intimate understanding through witnessing. Others’ relationship with God can you lead you to Him, but He does the rest. God wants a very personal relationship with you…He wants you to experience a miracle in your own life. The Disciples had witnessed many miracles that Jesus had performed, yet they had not experienced a miracle for themselves; when Jesus calmed the storm, they were given a “personal” miracle.

God wants to give you greater knowledge of Himself, so that when the storms rage around you, you can have peace because you have learned that He is in control and there is nothing to fear. He wants you to be assured that He is with you, He will carry you, and He is your refuge and source of strength.

God is our refuge and strength,

always ready to help in times of trouble.

(Psalm 46:1 NLT)

________________________

You can rest assured through

God’s Promises that

He will use every storm

for your good and His

greater purposes.

God always has a plan.

Trust Him—

get to the back

of the boat with Jesus.

________________________

When you understand your storms and grasp the fact that Jesus is in your boat, you, too, can experience a miracle in your storm. When you seek out God’s call to you through the storm, allowing Him to use it all for His purposes, your storms will bring about great blessings in your life. You’ll even find that your storms of life will be used by God to bless the lives of others! You can rest assured through God’s Promises…He will use every storm for your good and His greater purposes. God always has a plan. Trust Him. It’s your life He wants to use, but He can’t use you unless you’re in the back of the boat with Jesus—at rest, trusting Him. So, the begging question is,

“Where are you in the boat right now?”

.

Scriptures to Encourage You in the Storm

These trials are only to test your faith, to show that it is strong and pure. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold. So if your faith remains strong after being tried by fiery trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world. (1 Peter 1:7 NLT)

So, be truly glad! There is wonderful joy ahead, even though it is necessary for you to endure many trials for a while. (1 Peter 1:6 NLT)

I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me. (Psalm 16:8 NLT)

So be strong and take courage, all you who put your hope in the Lord! (Psalm 31:24 NLT)

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me.” (Jeremiah 29:11 NLT)

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us—they help us learn strength of character in us, and character strengthens our confident expectations of salvation. And this expectation will not disappoint us for we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. (Romans 5:3 NLT)

Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you. (James 4:8 NLT)

So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it. (Hebrews 4:16 NLT)

God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. (Psalm 46:1 NLT)

I have refined you but not in the way silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering. I will rescue you for my sake,—yes, for my own sake! (Isaiah 48:10 NLT)

“We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed and broken. We are perplexed, but we don’t give up and quit. We are hunted down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going…” (2 Corinthians 4: 8-10 NLT)

“For you will rescue me from my troubles and help me to triumph ...” (Psalm 54:7 NLT)

“So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and in his good time he will honor you. Give all your worries and care to God, for he cares about what happens to you.” (1 Peter 5:6-7 NLT)

Do not fear anything except the Lord Almighty. He alone is the Holy one. If you fear him, you need fear nothing else. He will keep you safe. (Isaiah 8: 12-14 NLT)

In quietness and in trusting confidence I find strength. (Isaiah 30:15 NLT)

It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible. (Hebrews 11:27-28 NLT)

We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you. (2 Chronicles 20:12 NLT)

In quietness and confidence is your strength. (Isaiah 30:15 NLT)

BONUS FEATURE:

1st Chapter of

THE WAYS

of

GOD

FINDING PURPOSE

THROUGH

YOUR PAIN

Cherie Hill

..

.

THE WAYS

of

GOD

FINDING PURPOSE

THROUGH

YOUR PAIN

Cherie Hill

© 2012 by Cherie Hill

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the author.

Scripture quotations marked "The Amplified Bible" (AMP) or "The Amplified New Testament" are taken from The Amplified Bible, Old Testament copyright © 1965, 1987 by the Zondervan Corporation and The Amplified New Testament copyright © 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked "ESV" are taken from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version, copyright © 2001, Wheaton: Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV®) are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked "NLT" are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked "NKJV" are taken from The New King James Version / Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville : Thomas Nelson Publishers., Copyright © 1982. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

.

.

As for God, his way is perfect.

Psalm 18:30 (NIV)

-

.

. TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1:              Can God Be Trusted?

Chapter 2:              Work In Progress

Chapter 3:              Hope Being Gone

Chapter 4:              Perfect Peace

.

Chapter 1:

Can God Be Trusted?

Life has taken some unexpected turns. You’ve either decided to take detours in your life, or you’ve been forced into them . . . only to find yourself at a dead end. The twists and turns have distorted your sense of direction and you feel like you’re spinning out of control. You’ve daily been striving to take the “high” road, but without warning you find yourself shoved off the road altogether, and you’ve landed into a ditch (the “valley”).

It appears you’re in the middle of nowhere. And when you need help the most, there’s not a soul in sight. If faith is supposed to be an insurance policy against the tragedies in life, it isn’t paying off.

In a moment of solemn realization, you’re surprised you’ve survived thus far; but in times like these, there have been moments when you wish you hadn’t. The truth is, you’re calling out to God, but He doesn’t seem to be answering. Desperation is draining you and you’re exhausted from the “fight of faith.” Doubt seems to be getting the best of you.

If God is at work, you can’t see it. If God really loves you, you can’t feel it. And if He doesn’t show up in your circumstances, it’s the end of the road. As the reality of the situation sets in, you can’t help but wonder if God really cares? You reason: He could have been there and He wasn’t. He could have done something and He didn’t. Looking back, your prayers even seem like cruel jokes . . . when you hoped for good, evil came; when you looked for light, darkness came flooding in.

Yet, when I hoped for good, evil came;

when I looked for light,

then came darkness.

The churning inside me never stops;

days of suffering confront me.

(Job 30:26-27 NIV)

You realize that what you’ve been wrestling with aren’t simple matters of faith, but feelings of abandonment and betrayal by a God who claims to love you. Your soul begins to cry out:

How long, O Lord, must I call for help?

But you do not listen!

I cry, but you do not come to save.

(Habakkuk 1:2 NLT)

As if things could not get worse, God remains silent and the emptiness intensifies. Why does God allow pain and suffering? C.S. Lewis so powerfully said,

God whispers to us in our pleasures,

speaks to us in our conscience,

but shouts in our pains:

It is His megaphone

to rouse a deaf world.

Albeit true, we just wish God wouldn’t shout so loud! Are we really that deaf? Evidently so:

They have ears but cannot hear.

(Psalm 115:6 NLT)

Yet, as He shouts at us, why can’t we see Him? Where is He when we need Him? He calls to us through the megaphone of pain, but when we come running, we can’t find Him!

But if I go east, he is not there;

if I go west, I do not find him.

When he is at work in the north,

I do not see him;

when he turns south,

I catch no glimpse of him.

(Job 23:8-9 NIV)

Doubt steps into the picture once again, and the questions begin to spiral out of control, “Does He know what we’re going through? Does He understand our desperation?” Through the silence, there’s a whisper in our spirit, and briefly we recall:

Even though Jesus was God’s Son,

he learned obedience

from the things he suffered.

(Hebrews 5:8 NLT)

For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. (Hebrews 4:15 NIV)

Our spirit is calmed as we realize that a deep desire is satisfied: We not only want a God who knows all about our pain, we want a God who shares in it.

He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. (Isaiah 53:3 NIV)

Although we might argue that our situation is as painful as enduring the Cross, our argument just simply doesn’t hold water. Our blood and water have not been spilled out, literally. As we humble ourselves at the foot of the Cross, in a brief moment of calm, we can’t help but wonder, “Does God know something I don’t? Is it possible . . . that things look different from His perspective and He knows the bigger picture? Is it feasible that in my pain and suffering, He IS working all things for good and I just can’t see it?” Maybe, just maybe, God knows what He’s doing. In a moment of reckoning, we realize:

“God allows in His wisdom

what He could easily

prevent in His power.”

—Graham Cooke

Even though that revelation is thought provoking and fairly “faith stretching” . . . knowing that God loves us and works “all things for good,” in the end, just doesn’t seem to be enough. The begging question within our soul is, “Can God be trusted?” As we ponder the answer, we recall that God’s ways are higher.

As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:9 NLT)

We’re convinced that His thoughts are higher than our thoughts—as hard as we try, we can’t figure God out. And His ways may be higher, but they certainly don’t seem better. We made plans for our lives, but He’s determining our steps and taking us places we never wanted to go.

We can make our plans,

but the Lord determines our steps.

(Proverbs 16:9 NLT)

We find ourselves taking the very next step in front of us, only to find our feet knocked out from under us. How can we trust a God that is constantly bringing us to our knees in helpless desperation? We decide to take the journey of life with Him and He brings us to the edge of a cliff. We find ourselves at the edge, consumed with fear, and God seems to push us right off; we’re helpless and hopeless and free falling into the abyss of darkness. What kind of loving God does this? Evidently, One that’s teaching us to trust Him.

Indeed these are the mere edges

of His ways,

and how small a whisper

we hear of Him!

(Job 16:14 NKJV)

The word “trust” is an interesting word. Its root is from the word that means “to lie face down on the ground.” With that in mind, we’re starting to get the picture . . . that’s why we’ve fallen and are unable to get up. It’s all about trust. And God is bringing us to a place where faith is no longer an option or a luxury—it’s a necessity.

Don’t for a second believe that trust is a passive state of attitude and mind. Trust is a dynamic, vital act of the soul by which we choose to take hold of the Promises of God and cling to them, despite any adversity that seeks to overwhelm us. In our moment of reckoning, as difficult as it is, our suffering Savior versed words that cause our faith to deplete even more, as we realize we don’t have the faith that willingly, gladly, and trustingly drinks of the cup of suffering that God has handed us:

Shall I not drink from the cup of suffering the Father has given me? (John 18:11 NLT)

Though it’s not what we want to hear, Jesus exemplifies how we are to trust God. Surrendering everything to God is the highest form of faith, especially when it includes suffering.

“This was a greater thing to say and do than calm the seas or raise the dead. Prophets and apostles could work wondrous miracles, but they could not always do and suffer the will of God. To do and suffer God’s will is still the highest form of faith, the most sublime Christian achievement. To have the bright aspirations of a younger life forever blasted; to bear a daily burden never congenial and to see no relief; to be pinched by poverty when you only desire a competency for the good and comfort of loved ones; to be fettered by some incurable physical disability; to be stripped bare of loved ones until you stand alone to meet the shocks of life—to be able to say in such a school of discipline, ‘Shall I not drink from the cup of suffering my Father has given me?’—this is faith at its highest and spiritual success at the crowning point. Great faith is exhibited not so much in ability to do as to suffer.”

–Dr. Charles Parkhurst

We want to trust, we want to have faith that moves mountains, but we need to be sure that God will not allow anything to thwart His glory. We need to be assured that nothing will keep Him from giving us “good” things in life. We need to know that He’s “in charge”—that nothing happens outside of His awareness. We need to be assured that no one and nothing can act outside of God’s sovereign will or against it. Once again, we hear His voice whispering to our troubled minds:

I am God, there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand and I will do all that I please.’ (Isaiah 46:9-10 NIV)

To us, our situation looks hopeless, but the place of hopelessness is where God can show Himself powerfully in our lives. What we find, as we wait on God to reveal His will, is that often times He only reveals Himself.

In our continued suffering, our questions of “Where is God when I’m hurting?” turn to questions like “Where is God when it doesn’t stop?” And what we find is that God is at work in our lives . . . He never sleeps or slumbers (see Psalm 121:4) . . . through our hopelessness, He’s drawing us near, preparing us to make a decision. Will we trust Him? Will we take Him at His Word?

In times of desperation, we will do one of two things: Run from God or run to Him. It’s our choice. And if we’ll trust Him while we’re upon our knees, He will take us through a journey of faith that allows us to fully grasp how Romans 8:28 reads into our life:

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

In job layoffs,

God works for the good.

In divorce,

God works for the good.

In pain and suffering,

God works for the good.

In broken relationships,

God works for the good.

In sickness,

God works for the good.

In addictions,

God works for the good.

In loss and grief,

God works for the good.

In your hour of need, God is going to show you that He is all you need. He’s the Redeemer. It may be “Saturday,” but God is a God of “Sundays”—resurrection days. When you’re trusting in God, you’re trusting in the power that raises the dead . . . He may be only moments from rolling your stone away. He wants us to trust Him on Saturday . . . He’s looking for our faith.

The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are committed to Him. (2 Chronicles 16:9 NIV)

Now, it may not “look” like Sunday is coming . . . trusting God is never easy, but it makes all things possible. You see, God loves to do the impossible, so if you’re at the edge, upon your knees, in desperation, God’s got you right where He wants you. He’s brought you to this very place. (Unfortunately, some of us just have farther to go to get there.)

He led the Israelites to the Red Sea—He’s led you to yours. God allowed Daniel to be thrown into a den of lions to be devoured—He’s done the same with you. He gave David the opportunity to defeat a giant—He’s giving you the chance as well. He permitted Shadrach, Meshack, and Abednego to step into a fiery furnace, but He met them there . . .  He’ll meet you in your furnace of affliction. He gave Peter the opportunity to walk on water—He’s calling you upon it too. But, you’ll have to trust Him. That’s what He’s after . . . your trust in Him. He’s after your heart . . . the one that’s breaking. And He needs you to make a decision . . . sometimes many times a day, hour, or minute—to trust Him. It’s your choice . . . He leaves the decision to you. Want to see His track record? Check out the Old and New Testament. Not a SINGLE person regretted trusting God . . . but the whole Bible is filled with the sorrows of those who decided not to.

Trusting God is only possible if you make a decision—a decision to “take His Word for it.” God’s Word is His promises to you . . . and you can bet your life on every single one of them.

Anyone who trusts in him will not be put to shame. (Romans 10:11 NIV)

You can make the decision to simply “trust” God and then watch Him prove Himself faithful, or He’ll bring you to a place of “needing” to trust Him. And most of the time, the walk of faith entails both ways. At the end of all hope, when you’re being tested beyond measure, when you are no longer able to trust anyone BUT God . . . there’s a way of escape, but it isn’t the way you probably envisioned.

The temptations in your life are not different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure. (1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT)

The way out! That’s what we’re hoping for. But God’s ways aren’t our ways. He’s taking us a different route . . . right through the valley of adversity. He’s bringing us to the end of our will, so that we will embrace His. And unexpectedly, we get a glimpse of just one of the ways of God. He brings us into brokenness, so that He can make us whole.

Indeed in our hearts we felt

the sentence of death.

But this happened that we

might not rely on ourselves,

but on God who raises the dead.

(2 Corinthians 1:9 NIV)

What we find, at the point of no return, is that the only way out is through . . . and the only way through is by trusting God. As if life were not difficult enough, that somber revelation is not in the least bit encouraging. In fact, on the surface of it, that means things will probably get worse. Can we really trust God when adversity consumes our life with pain? Does He really come to the rescue of those who seek Him? Does He, as His Word says, deliver those who call upon Him in the day of trouble? (see Psalm 50:15)

You’re not the first to ask such pertinent questions in the matters of faith, and you won’t be the last. Do these words seem eerily familiar at all? :

When I was in deep trouble, I searched for the Lord. All night long I pray, with hands lifted toward heaven, pleading. There can be no joy for me until he acts. I think of God, and I moan, overwhelmed with longing for his help. You don’t let me sleep. I am too distressed to even pray! I think of the good old days, long since ended, when my nights were filled with joyful songs. I search my soul and think about the difference now. Has the Lord rejected me forever? Will he never again show me favor? Is his unfailing love gone forever? Have his promises permanently failed? Has God forgotten to be kind? Has He slammed the door on his compassion? And I said, ‘This is my fate, that the blessings of the Most High have changed to hatred.’ (Psalm 77:2-10 NLT)

As we struggle in our faith, doubt steps into the conversation and asks the begging question, “Can God be trusted?” . . . He’s glad you asked.

IT’S A CHOICE

You need to make a choice—God’s way or your way. And God has spoken, “As for God, his way is perfect” (Psalm 18:30 NIV).

You see, your life is your vote  . . . you’re either for Him or against Him (see Luke 11:12). You either believe Him or you don’t. You either live your life trusting Him or you call Him a liar. Though that’s a rather harsh statement, it’s reality. You must cast your vote . . . everyone must—believers and unbelievers alike. Each and every day, we cast our vote.

God is not a man that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? (Numbers 23:19 NIV)

It’s not about believing IN Him . . . even demons believe.

You believe there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. (James 2:19 NIV)

Believing God is a different matter altogether. It’s trusting God. It’s having faith in who He says He is through His Word. Just as faith comes from hearing the Word of God (see Romans 10:17), trust is based upon our faith . . . it’s stepping out in faith and being assured that God is true to His Word. According to Nicholas Wolterstorff,

“Faith is the footbridge that you don’t know will hold you up over the chasm until you’re forced to walk out onto it.”

The truth is, in moments of doubt, all we need to do is stop and take a deep breath . . . look around us, and quite frankly, observe the obvious. The evidence that God exists is so overwhelming that it is simply senseless to spend any amount of time thinking otherwise.

Francis Chan urges us to “stop and think”:

“Right now you’re standing on this giant ball that’s spinning at a thousand miles an hour! And while it’s spinning, it’s flying around the sun at 67,000 miles an hour! That’s crazy!”

If God can keep the universe in motion, surely we can trust Him with our lives. Yet we doubt the One who placed each star in the sky.

When I consider your heavens,

the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars,

which you have set in place,

what is mankind that you

are mindful of them,

human beings that you care for them?

(Psalm 8:3-4 NIV)

God is a God of details . . . and He knows every detail of your life. Never doubt that He does.

And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows. (Luke 12:7 NLT) (P.S. If you don’t have hairs on your head—God knows that too!)

But doubt comes knocking regularly, doesn’t it?!? Rest assured, God’s Word holds true once more, He uses ALL things for good . . . even doubt.

“Where there is no longer any opportunity for doubt, there is no longer any opportunity for faith.”—Paul Tournier

Know that it’s “okay” to doubt. If you’re not willing to entertain doubt and let doubt make its case, your faith may never grow and become the footbridge that is needed to cross your chasm.

It’s okay to have doubt in the midst of your faith, but allowing doubt to rule in your life is as John Ortberg puts it in his book, Faith and Doubt, “like jumping off a diving board and trying to put off actually entering into the water.” You put yourself in an impossible situation. Sooner or later, you need to trust that the water is there and jump in. You have to believe something before you doubt anything, so give yourself a break and realize that every saint doubts. Your belief in God is the first step, but it’s in ultimately trusting Him that not only puts you in the water, but causes you to walk upon it.

But, it’s your choice. And not choosing is its own choice. Trusting God is not a decision you make once. It’s a choice that must be made hundreds upon hundreds of times a day. The decision will sometimes be small, at other times, life changing. Either way, the choice comes down to whether or not you believe that God is trustworthy.

Peter had a chance to trust God. (Note: The other Disciples stayed in the boat. Peter took a risk—He chose to trust, even through his doubts.)  Jesus called to Peter as He walked upon the water:

“Lord, if it is you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt.?”

One thing that stands out in this story is that the Disciples had “gone ahead” of Jesus. We’re not sure if that was by their choice or Jesus’, but we know that we tend to “go ahead” of God from time to time. (Okay, more often than not.) Yet, what’s even more remarkable about this story is that although the Disciples thought they were “ahead” of Him, Jesus came walking to them. It seems we’re NEVER ahead of God. We’re no different than Peter . . . we WANT to believe, but our circumstances get the best of us. The winds of adversity begin to instill fear in our hearts and we take our eyes off Jesus. Trusting in God requires taking risks and trusting in Christ-centered help. Mature faith will never develop in shallow water.

There’s another place where there was a choice that had to do with water . . . it was a healing at a pool. The pool of water had been known to cure people. The waters were said to make the blind to see and the lame to walk, yet there was one man who had been an invalid sitting by the pool for thirty-eight years. (Wow that’s a long time, yet we too sit on this side of faith allowing doubt to get the best of us.) When Jesus saw him, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?” (A choice had to be made.) What seemed like a ridiculous question revealed the choice God gives us in the obvious situations of life . . . we must “want” His help. The man’s response is even more shocking, as he is before the Son of God . . . making up excuses! (Haven’t we done the same?) “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.” (We mock his excuse —“How absurd is that!?!” Yet, our excuses are no better.) Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk!” At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. (Did you catch that? AT ONCE!)

Listen, don’t wait for Jesus to come to you. Go to Him. Don’t expect a “divine” sign from heaven or a “feeling” within your soul before you choose to trust God. Rest assured, in times of hopelessness, those things will never occur. There may not be anyone there to “help you into the healing pool when the water is stirred.” Most often you’re going to have to encourage yourself in the Lord. You’re going to have to “Get up!” and walk forward in faith . . . trusting that God is true to His Word.

David encouraged himself in the Lord his God. (1 Samuel 30:6 KJV)

Know that once you take a step of faith, you’ll be met with winds of adversity that instill fear in your heart, they’ll be doubts that try to keep you from taking another step toward God—you’ll come face to face with the enemy, the devil. An old southern preacher once said,

“If you don’t come face to face with the devil sometimes, then you must be going the same direction he is.”

Make sure you’re not moving in the same direction as the devil. Don’t be afraid to face him. If God is for you, who dare be against you (see Romans 8:31)? Know that each obstacle you face is part of the enemy’s strategy, but tools in the hands of God. As hard as it is to accept, God calls the shots. And yes, He allows good as well as bad.

When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, Consider: God has made the one as well as the other. (Ecclesiastes 7:14 NIV)

Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad? (Job 2:10 NLT)

The sooner we realize that God is God and we’re not, the better off we’ll be. (His throne isn’t big enough for the two of you.) If we choose to sit upon our own throne, running our own kingdom, He’ll let us. But, He urges us to trust Him. He pleads His case within the Bible and urges us to choose “life”—His way.

This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live. (Deuteronomy 30:19 NIV)

God makes it clear: It’s our choice. And the choice is vital. There is nothing more critical than life and death; nothing more desirable on earth than blessings and nothing less desirable than curses. How much easier can the choice be?

To believe actively that our Heavenly Father constantly spreads around us providential circumstances that work for our present good and our everlasting well-being brings to the soul a veritable benediction. Most of us go through life praying a little, planning a little, jockeying for position, hoping but never being quite certain of anything, and always secretly afraid that we will miss the way. This is a tragic waste of truth and never gives rest to the heart. There is a better way. It is to repudiate our own wisdom and take instead the infinite wisdom of God. Our insistence upon seeing ahead is natural enough, but it is a real hindrance to our spiritual progress. God has charged Himself with full responsibility for our eternal happiness and stands ready to take over the management of our lives the moment we turn in faith to Him. —A.W. Tozer, Knowledge of the Holy

The question is, “Will we do it God’s way or our own?” We are all earthen vessels, but whether or not we claim to be the captain of the ship is a vital part of whether we arrive safely at our destination, sink at sea, or end up lost in the vast ocean for eternity.

As the story goes, there was a ship sailing through black water on a black night . . . the seaman on watch saw a light ahead. He reported to the Captain who immediately ordered the following message sent:

“Request that you alter your course

10 degrees south.”

The reply: “Request that you alter

your course 10 degrees north.”

The Captain, now angry, sent another message a little more terse than the first: “Request you alter your course 10 degrees south. I am the Captain.”

The reply: “Request you alter your course 10 degrees north. I am a third class seaman.”

This time, the Captain became furious: “Request you alter your course 10 degrees south. I am a battleship.”

The reply: “Request you alter you course 10 degrees north. I am a lighthouse.” It’s up to you.

It’s up to you. The choice is yours. Jesus is the Lighthouse in our lives. The adversities in our lives are avenues that God uses to direct us to Himself, once again. God has made the way for us:

I am the way

and the truth and the life.

John 14:6 (NIV)

In times of darkness, don’t doubt what God has shown you in the Light. It all comes down to whether or not we trust God. And our question, “Can God be trusted?” is only answered by yet another question, “Is God REALLY sovereign?” Our faith hinges on our answer to that one question. And our answer changes everything.

WHO’S IN CHARGE?

There’s no such thing as God being “almost” sovereign. He either is or He isn’t. And if He isn’t, then He can’t be trusted.

“What comes to our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” —A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy

You see, God is real, whether we believe He is or not. Our disbelief doesn’t erase His existence—just as our lack of faith and trust in Him doesn’t nullify His faithfulness.

What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God’s faithfulness? (Romans 3:3 NIV)

If we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself. (2 Timothy 2:13 NIV)

You may be at a place that you’re not even sure God exists, much less at a point of trusting in His sovereignty; you may need to take a step back and understand why it is you should believe.

[Note: If you’ve never trusted Jesus as your Savior and you’re exhausted from the trials of life and going your own way, you can come to Him now. (He’s always waiting.) Without Christ, your suffering is meaningless misery. But if you’ll let Him take control of your life, becoming Lord and Savior, He’ll walk with you through every difficulty and give you unimaginable peace and joy, even in the midst of pain. If you would like to accept His offer of salvation, you can pray:

Lord Jesus, I believe you are truly the Son of God. I confess that I have sinned against You in thought, word, and deed. Please forgive me for all of my wrongdoings and let me now live in relationship with You going forward. I receive You as my personal Savior, accepting the work you accomplished on the Cross to save me from my sins. Fill me with the Holy Spirit so that I might follow you all the days of my life. Amen.

Once you’ve prayed that prayer, seek after Jesus with all that you are. Meditate on His Word day and night. Grab hold of God and never let go. God loves you with an unfailing love.]

The only way to trust God is to know Him. And knowing God is the key to finding peace and purpose in a life that can seem incredibly overwhelming on some days and absolutely meaningless on others. In His great love for us, He says that if we’ll seek Him, we’ll find Him . . . if we seek Him with all of our heart. And what we’ll find is that ironically, His existence, His sovereignty, His power and providence is less about faith and more about facts.

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. (Jeremiah 29:13 NIV)

Although it may seem like it, God isn’t hiding from you. He’s not avoiding the “tough” questions or the “awkward” situations—He’s always waiting for you to come to Him.

So the Lord must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him. (Isaiah 30:18 NLT)

God waits for you to come to Him. He longs to pour out His love upon you and bring Light into your darkness. But, He loves you more than that . . . in His sovereignty, He knows that through this journey of life you will need to trust Him for everything, in order for you to experience peace and joy while on this earth. So, He’s allowed, in His wisdom, your situation of desperation. It’s an opportunity for God to teach you something deeper about Himself. He has brought you to your knees, so that you have nowhere to look, but up. He has a habit of allowing us to dig holes so deep that we can’t get out without His help. It’s by design. God is teaching us to trust. The paradox of the Christian faith walk is that the strongest Christian is the weakest Christian.

That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:10 NIV)

The weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength. (1 Corinthians 1:25 NIV)

But, how do we trust God? How can we be sure of His Promises? In order to trust God, we need to “know” Him. And in order to know Him . . . we must listen to His voice. And His voice is heard through His Word.

My suffering was good for me,

for it taught me

to pay attention to your decrees.

(Psalm 119:71 NLT)

If we are to trust God, then it is crucial that we have confidence in His sovereignty in all that affects us. If there is a single event in all of the universe that can occur outside of God’s sovereign control, then God can’t be trusted. If you believe in a world of pure chance, what difference would it make if a plane crashes in a random city and yours makes it safely to its destination? But if you believe in a world that is ruled by a powerful, loving, and gracious God who cares for you at all times, then that belief makes an incredible difference.

We must be absolutely convinced that God’s love is perfect and His wisdom, infinite. Our trust in God cannot be based upon someone else’s experience, but upon what God has told us about Himself in His Word. We want to see God at work in our lives, yet we fail to realize that His hand is only visible to eyes of faith. And faith doesn’t walk by sight.

“Faith is to believe what we do not see, and the reward of this faith is to see what we believe.” —St. Augustine

We have to receive God by faith—by faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. When you learn to trust God, you don’t have to “see” anything. You just know with all certainty that He’s there.

There was a little boy who was out flying a kite. It was a fine day for kite flying; the wind was brisk and large billowy clouds were blowing across the sky. The kite went up and up until it was entirely hidden by the clouds. “What are you doing?” a man asked the little boy. “I’m flying a kite,” he replied. “Flying a kite, are you?” the man asked. “How can you be sure? You can’t see your kite.” “No,” said the boy, “I can’t see it, but every little while I feel a tug, so I know for sure that it’s there!”

Despite all appearances, we must trust God through our faith in His revealed Word. His Word is vital to our survival . . . it’s what lights our path:

Thy Word is a lamp to my feet and light for my path. (Psalm 119:105 NIV)

We want to know His “ways”. . . they’re not hidden—they’re revealed through His Word. As we seek Him and His voice through His Word, we get a glimpse of God’s ways—how He thinks and how He acts. He’s told us that we need His Word just as we need bread for our physical bodies:

Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. (Matthew 4:4 NIV)

God’s Word is straight from His mouth. His Word was written to teach us:

Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled. (Romans 15:4 NLT)

God’s ways are revealed through His Word. He loves you enough to speak to you—to tell you the Truth. And through His Words, we learn that He is sovereign—the Scriptures give proof throughout history that He is.

THE FACTS OF FAITH

God’s Word, the Bible is the most unique book ever written. It is the Bestselling book of all time across over 2000 years. That alone is astounding. Unique to the Bible are the foretelling of over 2500 prophecies of which approximately 2000 have already been fulfilled. (The remaining 500 reach into the future and are yet to unfold.) (You can find more astounding facts where Faith meets Science at: http://www.reasons.org) If you’re a numbers person, you can make an attempt to digest that the probability of any one of these prophecies having been fulfilled by chance are less than 1 in 10, conservatively. The more intriguing part is that the prophecies are for the most part independent of one another , so the odds for these being fulfilled by chance without error is less than one in 10²ººº. (That’s 1 with 2000 zeroes behind it!) (Facts found at Reasons.org) Although others have “partially” predicted events over time, God specifically states in Deuteronomy 18:21-22 that He does not make even the SLIGHTEST error in His predictions. With God, there is NO room for error. These are facts . . .  not faith.

Over two thousand years, the Bible has been scrutinized more than any other book on earth. No one has been able to disprove Its authenticity. By just the mere fact that It has survived such harsh critics should alert us to Its supernatural quality. In a world of such abundant evil and cynicism, the Bible should have been dismantled a LONG time ago.

“Jews preserved it as no other manuscript has ever been preserved. With their massora they kept tabs on every letter, syllable and paragraph. They had special classes of men within their culture whose sole duty was to preserve and transmit these documents with practically perfect fidelity . . . whoever counted the letters, syllables, or words of Plato or Aristotle? Cicero or Seneca?” –Bernard Ramm, Can I Trust My Old Testament? (Speaking on the accuracy and number of Biblical manuscripts of the Hebrew Scriptures.)

“The truth is that the Bible, when compared to other ancient writings, has more manuscript evidence than any 10 pieces of classical literature combined. The facts show that no documents of the ancient period are as well attested bibliographically as the New Testament.” (John Warwick Montgomery, History and Christianity.)

When you break down the Bible, Its reliability must be tested just as any other ancient document. In order to study the Bible’s reliability, historians have studied the number of existing manuscripts and the dating of those manuscripts. For starters, there are more than 5,300 Greek manuscripts of the New Testament that date between 40-100 A.D. If you include the manuscripts of the New Testament in Latin and earlier versions, the total number of manuscripts of the New Testament reach over 24,000 copies. These are HISTORICAL documents, authenticated. Historians, not Christians, have proven it. The Bible is reliable. And that changes everything.

“It may be stated categorically that no archaeological discovery has ever controverted a biblical reference.”–Nelson Glueck (Renowned Jewish archaeologist)

“There can be no doubt that archaeology has confirmed the substantial historicity of the Old Testament tradition.”― William F. Albright (One of the world’s most renowned archaeologists.)

For most, it’s not the reliability of the Bible’s documents that are the problem . . . it’s the “supernatural” side of things that causes people not to believe. The bottom line, no matter how hard you try, you can’t argue with God.

If you just go with the basics of the Bible, if you just think about It in a common sense way, why would the writers of the greatest book in history acknowledge such dreadful sins and doubt in God. Why would God allow this to be written in His book? Why wouldn’t you, as an author, paint a more “rosy” picture of yourself? Instead, God reveals the good, the bad, and the ugly. He reveals Truth. He reveals His mercy and He assures His wrath. He sheds light on the trials of the greatest saints to ever walk the earth. He shows their vulnerability, their fears, and their atrocious failures. He shows how He works in the lives of those who hate Him and how He gives grace to those who should never deserve it. He takes a man who murders Christians and makes him into an apostle that changes the course of the Christian faith forever. The Apostle Paul, by his own admission, was the worst of sinners. Yet, God reached down, made him blind, and then made him REALLY see.

You can look at every single documented event in the Bible and see that God is speaking to us. He’s showing us things about Himself and ourselves. He has proven throughout history that He is absolutely trustworthy. Time and time again, He’s shown that His grace prevails. Even upon the Cross, the criminal who hung beside Jesus acknowledged his sin and laid his soul before God’s mercy. The message: It’s never too late to believe . . . it’s never too late to turn to God and trust Him. His mercies never fail (see Lamentations 3:22).

In the face of all that you must go through in life . . . with all that you choose to believe in this life, why not take a risk and just “make the choice” to believe God . . . to take Him at His Word? So many get to this point of decision, yet can’t step forward . . . the reason—Pride.

SURRENDER

You may think you are going through trials and tragedies that are insurmountable, but none of them would compare to God abandoning you to yourself. Nothing would be more catastrophic than God allowing us to go our own way with no hope of turning back to Him. His love sees past our pride and offers grace at every turn. God knows that our pride keeps us from understanding our desperate natural condition. The truth is: we’re corrupt in every facet of our character. But, though we’re broken, we can be fixed. God loves us too much to leave us as we are. So, when we come to Him, when we abandon all else, we encounter a Divine exchange: We surrender this life—God gives us TRUE life. Seems like a no–brainer, don’t you think?

Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Whoever wants to be my disciples must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? (Matthew 16:24-26 NIV)

Forfeiting your soul—that’s a depressing and defeating thought. But, people do it every day—they forfeit their souls to addictions, hopelessness, fear, and despair. Maybe you’ve done it. If you have, there’s still hope. As long as you’re alive, you can be Jesus’ disciple. All you have to do is surrender.

The great misconception is that God loves us just as we are. That’s true and not true. The truth is: He loves us too much to leave us as we are. He’s not going to leave us where He found us or how He found us, if we surrender ourselves into His care. Truly, we must die to self. Why? Because all too often, our pride gets the best of us—we seem to think we’re better than God. We pick apart His plan and question His purposes. In times of deep despair we dethrone Him through our doubt and find Him a failure through our fears. We cling to what we know, see, and feel, and then declare that God just isn’t there. We trust ourselves, instead of God. And that . . .  is the greatest tragedy. But, God is greater than our sin . . . He’s greater than our pride.

If we’ll surrender, laying down our lives, and abandoning ourselves to Him, He goes to work. In your surrender, His Light will slowly, but surely, pierce the darkness you’ve been walking in. He’ll reach down and save you. And then He’ll take your brokenness and put you back together better than before. You can’t make all your wrongs right, but God can. You can’t change your heart’s desires, but God will (see Ezekiel 36:26). You can’t walk through your valley in your own strength, but you can do it in His.

With all that God promises to do in exchange for surrendering our pride, which destroys our lives anyway, why wouldn’t we run to Him in helpless abandon? Why wouldn’t we turn to Him and trust Him? It’s for one reason alone: We don’t understand the depths of His love.

CRAZY LOVE

There’s something you need to know about God before you trust Him . . . His love is CRAZY. In fact, His love makes no sense at all. Don’t try and understand God’s love—just receive it.

God’s love not only abounds, it proliferates. It is unfailing and overflowing. His love is excessive and beyond measure. Yet, when we’re facing evil and suffering, we interpret our circumstances to mean that God doesn’t love us after all. In fact, we’re disappointed beyond words that His love for us doesn’t exempt us from our pain and suffering. Isn’t faith supposed to be our insurance policy against pain and suffering? If God loves us, why does He allow us to suffer? In the face of such difficult questions, and with the appearance that God is dodging them all, He speaks volumes through His Word once more:

After God revealed his name to Moses, “He passed in front of Moses proclaiming, ‘The Lord, The Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.’” (Exodus 34:6-7 NIV)

The love we know and “experience” here on earth sets us up for failure in our relationship with God. Superficial love does not withstand the test of time or trials of life. God doesn’t love us on our terms, but His.

The Lord’s unfailing love

surrounds the man

who trusts in him.

(Psalm 32:10 NIV)

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love. (Psalm 51:1 NIV)

Grasping the Truth of God’s love is the secret to a victorious life. God’s love conquers all. No matter what you face, no matter the depths of your sin, God’s love overcomes them all—not because of what you’ve done, but because of what He did . . . it’s all about the Cross . . . His love and mercy poured out WHILE we were still sinners. You can’t gain God’s love and you can’t lose it. It’s crazy. Hold onto Truth and never let go. God’s love will set you free and keep you free.

This is love: not that we loved God,

but that He loved us and sent His Son

as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

We love Him because He first loved us.

(1 John 4:10 NIV, 19 NKJV)

To know God, is to know that God’s love remains even through our trials and temptations, through our joys and pains, and through our faith and doubt. We must dwell in God’s love and know that even though He is loving, He is holy . . . and holiness demands justice.

God is love, but He is not only love. We can’t be fooled: God’s love in the New Testament does not eclipse His holiness. If we think that God only loves and does not hate, then you’d think He’d only call upon us to love . . . but He doesn’t. He commands, “Hate evil, love good” (see Amos 5:15). God is clear in the Psalms when He declares, “He [God] is angry with the wicked every day” (Psalm 7:11 NLT). To look at life through the eyes of God is to love good and hate evil. Our God of love is also a God of wrath (see Romans 1:18). It was the same Jesus who spoke words of compassionate love and forgiveness that also spoke some of the harshest words of condemnation. Jesus spoke more about Hell, than anyone else in the Bible. His infinite love required Him to condemn and to call for repentance. Who the Lord loves, He also disciplines; He punishes those whom He calls His children. So, we can’t be tempted to believe that just because we’re being punished for our sins, or we’re enduring the suffering caused by another’s sins, God doesn’t love us. He will love us through it. He’ll use it all to draw us nearer to Him.

“Is Israel still my son, my darling?” says the Lord. “I often have to punish him, but I still love him. That’s why I long for him and surely I will have mercy on him.” (Jeremiah 31:20 NLT)

“I have loved you my people,

with an everlasting love.

With unfailing love

I have drawn you to myself.”

(Jeremiah 31:3 NLT)

His love, in its perfection, corrects and bandages us. Though His hand may strike us, it also heals (see John 5:17-27). Though troubles come, His love prevails.

“His love never quits.”

—Eugene Peterson

The knowledge of God’s love for you is the foundational Truth upon which all other truths are built. You can’t go forward in faith, you can’t understand God’s ways, until you understand His love.

Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. (Ephesians 3:17-19 NLT)

Did you catch that? He’ll make a home in your heart. The moment you fully accept God’s love for you, something’s about to happen: He’s about to make your heart His home. He’s about to go to work. And all the construction is going to seem chaotic—it’s going to be painful. As He oversees your circumstances, He’s about to go to work on you. As you’re trusting God, accepting His love, and pressing forward in faith, the chaos shouldn’t be confused with the transforming works of God’s hands. Although He destroys, He rebuilds. He’s got the blueprints for your life . . . and there’s some work that needs to be done. When you’re trusting God, you’re always a “work in progress.”

“Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of—throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself.”―George MacDonald (Quoted by C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity)

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BONUS FEATURE:

1st Chapter of

empty.

Living Full of Faith

When Life Drains You Dry

Cherie Hill

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empty.

Living Full of Faith

When Life Drains You Dry

Cherie Hill

© 2012 by Cherie Hill

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the author.

Scripture quotations marked "The Amplified Bible" (AMP) or "The Amplified New Testament" are taken from The Amplified Bible, Old Testament copyright © 1965, 1987 by the Zondervan Corporation and The Amplified New Testament copyright © 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked "ESV" are taken from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version, copyright © 2001, Wheaton: Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV®) are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked "NLT" are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked "NKJV" are taken from The New King James Version / Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville : Thomas Nelson Publishers., Copyright © 1982. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

CONTENTS

Chapter 1                            Thirsty

Chapter 2                            At the Well

Chapter 3                            Poured Out

Chapter 4                            Full of Faith

Thirsty

Empty. That word pretty much sums it up doesn’t it? When life leaves you at a loss for words…when you lose your job unexpectedly, when the doctor says cancer is what you’re now facing, when your spouse is living life out of control through addictions, when you find out the joy of having a child has now been tainted with “special needs,” when your “wayward” child has become completely lost, when your spouse for decades suddenly decides the marriage is over, when financial losses have shattered far too many dreams and driven you into deep despair, when emotional and physical abuse is all you have to wake up to each day, or when death strikes and there are no answers…in times like these, there seems to be no words, but “empty” is as close as you’ll ever get to describing how you feel.

Yet, although it’s a fitting word, it doesn’t even begin to explain the condition of the depths of our soul, when we’re “empty.” Our lives, which are compiled of moments, hours, days, and years, well up from hidden depths within us that reveal more about us than we’d like. It’s what’s on the surface that gives insight to what’s going on within, and at this point, none of it looks good. In our desperation, we attempt to fill and satisfy, what we perceive as our deepest needs, but nothing quenches our dying thirst. And “empty” takes on a whole new meaning.

Although the circumstances of our lives seem to aptly define “empty,” Webster’s definition says that empty is: containing nothing; not occupied or inhabited; lacking reality, substance, meaning, or value; having no purpose. The word seems “well” defined, but in many ways fails, miserably, to fully describe its true meaning.

We all find ourselves daily living with the harsh reality that life is hard and life hurts. We demand that life be fair, yet we’re well aware that it’s not. Life doesn’t waste any time in casting us into the depths of the pain through unbearable emptiness; although difficult to imagine, physical pain can sometimes be easier to endure than the ongoing anguish of loneliness, rejection, loss, and failures. Pain, physical or emotional, has a way of emptying our soul to the point that we’re certain we can’t go on. And as we plunge into the depths of our soul, we begin to doubt just about everything.

Through the emptiness, our soul is drained dry and we’re not concerned that we’ll crack beneath the pressure, we already have. We find our life being poured out. And faith seems to be irrelevant as we’re scrambling to pick up the pieces of what remains of our so called “personal relationship” with God. If He’s so personal, where is He? If He’s promised to never leave us nor forsake us, why does it seem as though He has?

When you’re empty, you wonder if your faith, up to this point, has meant anything at all. “Did I  ever really believe? Others seem to get it, why can’t I?” With tormenting questions like these flooding our soul, the emptiness only exasperates. The truth is: we don’t like to hurt. Pain is our enemy―but life has a way of ignoring our desires and forcing us to experience an emptiness that we can’t fill. And we’ll do anything to ease or eliminate the suffering of our soul.

The truth is, we may have been living our lives taking God at “His Word,” but we find ourselves hardly believing Him, at this point. He seems completely imperceptible by the five senses He’s given to us. We find ourselves saying something similar to John Updike’s characters in A Month of Sundays,

“I have not faith.

Or rather, I have faith

but it doesn’t seem to apply.”

We find ourselves, and our faith, thirsting in greater ways than we ever imagined. Not only are we dehydrated, but there’s not even a mirage to give us any kind of hope.

“O God, you are my God;

earnestly I seek you;

my soul thirsts for you;

my flesh faints for you,

as in a dry and weary land

where there is no water…

my soul clings to you;

your right hand upholds me.”

Psalm 63.1,8 (ESV)

This entire Psalm is powerful, indeed, and makes a strong case of how we are to desire God with passionate pursuit. Yet it also suggests that we will never be satisfied. We’ve tried to fill and satisfy what cannot be satisfied by any of our desperate attempts. In fact, in our efforts to find satisfaction, we have fanned a thirst that can’t be quenched.

Our faith can take a tragic detour if we overlook this idea of “thirst.” While our souls are poured out, emptied by the troubles of this life, we find ourselves discouraged by the words of our Savior,

“But whoever drinks of the water

that I shall give him shall never thirst;

but the water that I shall give him

shall be in him a well of water

springing up into everlasting life.”

John 4:14 (AKJV)

With every intent to encourage us in our faith, in an effort to fill us, we find ourselves emptied even more, as His words haunt our spirit. Jesus said we’d be filled, yet we’re completely, and utterly, empty. Doubt begins to make its argument…  “God’s Word isn’t true, He said I’ll never thirst, yet I’m empty and thirsting more than I ever imagined possible.” God doesn’t appear to be keeping up His end of things and as life is unraveling, we would expect faith to work. Reasoning within ourselves takes us to a place we never thought we’d be―full of unbelief. By all indications, seems like this case is closed and faith has no defense.

“When we get our spiritual house in order, we’ll be dead. This goes on. You arrive at enough certainty to be able to make your way, but it is making it in darkness. Don’t expect faith to clear things up for you. It is trust, not certainty.” ―Flannery O’Connor

Why is it that we are thirsty, when He promised we’d never thirst? And if Jesus Himself said we’d never thirst, why are some of His last words so resounding throughout history (John 19:28 NIRV):

“I am thirsty.”

The One who IS Living Water knows our emptiness, as He takes our sin upon Himself. Sin separates us from God. And there will be a point in our lives, whether by our own wrongdoings or others, where we will fully know the pain of sin. And we will be thirsty. We will find ourselves with no strength to carry on.

“My strength is dried up…”

Psalm 22:15 (NIV)

Although what we endure in this life cannot even begin to compare with the suffering of the Cross, we simply can’t seem to convince our soul of that. The emptiness that consumes us seems fittingly comparable. We’re thirsty, and we wonder why.

“O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you;

my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you,

in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”

Psalm 63:1 (NIV)

In our emptiness, we long to be filled, but there are simple elements of faith that seem to get in the way. We can’t help but wonder, if we ARE walking in faith, why is it that we’re thirsty? Why are we carrying burdens at all? Where is God when our soul is parched in endless desperation? David’s Psalm could be our daily journal entry. His thirst written in Psalm 42 has now become full blown dehydration in Psalm 38, and we can relate:

“I am bent and bowed down greatly;

I go about mourning all the day long.

I am faint and sorely bruised

[deadly cold and quite worn out];

I groan by reason of the disquiet

and moaning of my heart.

My heart throbs, my strength fails me;

as for the light of my eyes, it also is gone from me”

Psalm 38: 6,8,10 (AMP)

With the passion of a deer panting for streams of water (Psalm 42:1), our faith plunges us into deeper thirst. Yet, as we thirst, our faith is poured out and we find ourselves believing “The Faith Lie.”

The Faith Lie

You’ve heard it…you’ve probably even believed it. You may have bet your faith on it…which is why you’re empty and hopeless amid the circumstances of your life. It’s a little phrase that goes like this:

“God will never give you more

than you can handle.”

Sounds good. It even seems to give us hope and strength to face one more day, but it’s a lie. You hear it often―you may even be continually assuring and encouraging yourself through its apparent comfort to your soul. As you face another day of complete emptiness, you find yourself struggling to continually believe that no matter what you face, God is never going to allow you to deal with more than you can handle―that brings reassurance to a spirit that is restless and hopeless. It may be what we want to hear, but it’s not what we NEED to hear. We need truth. And the truth is that although this wonderful little phrase has traveled through the generations, leaving a glimpse of hope in its wake, it’s not in the Bible. God has NEVER said that He won’t give us more than we can handle. What He has shown is, throughout history, He ALWAYS gives people MORE than they can handle.

“What’s the world’s greatest lie?” the boy asked.

“It’s this: that at a certain point in our lives,

we lose control of what’s happening to us,

and our lives become controlled by fate.

That’s the world’s greatest lie.”

―Paulo Coelho

So, where does this lie come from, and how has Truth been twisted? It comes from 1 Corinthians 10:13 (NLT):

“The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.”

We can’t be deceived, or our faith will fail―the verse is referring to “temptations,” not the “troubles” of life. We can look at nearly EVERY situation in the Bible where God shows up in miraculous ways and find that He ALWAYS gave people MORE than they could handle. That’s when God shows up on the scene of people’s lives. Moses didn’t part the Red Sea on his own. Daniel should have been devoured in a lion’s den. Who survives walking into a fiery furnace? Goliath should have crushed David, and Jonah should have been left for dead. The storm on the Sea of Galilee was obviously going to drown the Disciples, and even Jesus needed help carrying His Cross.

We glean even greater insight into this truth when we look to Paul the Apostle who found himself crushed, beyond his ability to endure. Here’s what we learn from Paul in 2 Corinthians 1:8 and the first part of verse 9 (NLT):

“We were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure, and we thought we would never live through it. In fact, we expected to die.”

Hardly seems like a loving God would allow such saints to go through such anguish, but our faulty thinking is simply because we don’t understand His ways. It is out of His great love for them that He allowed them to face the impossible. Why is that? It’s because of the second part of verse 9 from 2 Corinthians (NLT):

“But as a result, we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely only on God, who raises the dead.”

There’s purpose through the pain, there’s a reason for our emptiness. God ALWAYS gives us more than we can handle, in order to reveal what He is able to do through our faith in Him. We must be emptied of ourselves, so that God Himself can fill us―He wants to show us that prayer works. He wants to bring about miracles that go far beyond our imagination. He wants to display His power, presence, and glory. Without situations in life that we CAN’T handle, we’d never need God to show up. Why would we even need to pray at all? We’d never have the opportunity to see our own Red Seas parted. Who wants to miss out on that??

It’s critical to the survival of your faith that you stop believing the lie. Here’s the truth:

If God is only giving you what you CAN handle,

you’re not learning to depend upon God,

you’re not stepping out in faith,

and your faith isn’t growing.

In fact, if you’re facing situations that are far beyond your control…God is trusting you more than you trust Him. He obviously knows that He’s given you a measure of faith that is much more than you think. We need to clearly understand that faith is a journey that involves overwhelming disappointments, joys and sorrows, periods of waiting, and plain and simple long suffering that gives no evidence that it will ever end. The truth is, no matter how much we prepare, take precautions, and try to eliminate risks in life, we’ll never succeed. And faith is hard. Don’t let the lies about faith cause you to turn away from God, or worse yet, remake Him in your own image.

If we’ll leave the lie behind and move on in greater faith, knowing that every obstacle is an opportunity for faith to rise above it, we’ll find ourselves experiencing the peace that God promises to give us as we trust in Him. If Jesus emptied Himself, shouldn’t we also see it as a necessary part of our faith, instead of viewing it as God’s greatest failure in our lives.

“Have this mind among yourselves,

which is yours in Christ Jesus, who,

though he was in the form of God,

did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,  but emptied himself, by taking the form of a

servant, being born in the likeness of men.

And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death,

even death on a cross”

Philippians 2:5-8 (ESV)

God’s goal: to bring us to a place where we realize we can’t do it without Him. It’s about bringing us to the Cross―as many times as it takes, so that our relationship with Him is the wellspring of our lives. Our place of emptiness is exactly where He needs us, in order that we might fully realize that our need for Him is greater than any other. (And all too often we need to be reminded of that.) If you’re empty, you can be sure you’re about to be filled. But first, you must clearly understand why it is you’re thirsty. You need to take a look at the emptiness and grasp the fullness of its purpose.

Empty

Before we can be filled, we need to grasp the full meaning of our emptiness. Our God speaks directly to us regarding our emptiness. He tells us, without hesitation, why we’re empty in Jeremiah 2:13 (NIV):

"My people have committed two sins:

They have forsaken me, the spring of living water,

and have dug their own cisterns,

broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”

What’s a cistern? We certainly didn’t know we dug one and we definitely didn’t realize it was broken! The definition by Webster, gives us clear meaning: an artificial reservoir for storing liquids, especially water (italics mine). Confusion gets the best of us as we try, desperately, to understand our emptiness. But there’s no need for confusion, we’ve simply misunderstood the purpose of our lives; and in order to be filled, we need to be poured out…because sin, our faulty thinking, our idea that being “empty” is contrary to God’s best in our lives, keeps us from being filled. And here’s where we get a clear understanding of emptiness.

We’re empty because we’re more concerned about “feeling” better than finding God. We struggle because the sinful nature within us tells us that God exists for us, not that we exist for Him. And that’s normal―that’s our fallen human nature. And life has a way of tainting the Truth. The troubles of this world are so overwhelming that it’s difficult at best to even consider “living for God” and His purposes, when we’re consumed with needs that seem even greater than what God can meet.

Life seems to have a way of throwing us into such confusion and pain that we simply lose all hope―our joy is gone and nothing encourages us. We’re forced to face a truth we just can’t grasp: we can live obediently, believe God, practice our spiritual disciplines, walk in the fullness of Christ, but troubles still come…and we still find ourselves empty. We’re continually assured that we cannot escape this life, which seems like endless pain and problems. We can find ourselves being poured out, even in our yearning to be filled.

Through our daily struggles, we grasp the fact that simply “walking by faith,” following God’s plan, is not enough. It seems clear that even if we apply Biblical principles, we don’t always get what we want. That’s not the way we hoped faith worked.

What we really want through unpredictable struggles is someone we can trust. We want hope, joy, and peace amid all the uncertainty, pain, and endless confusion. And without someone we can trust through it all, we do one of two things: We either pretend things are better than they really are or we find a way to relieve the pain. When we look at our troubles, we see them as senseless and meaningless. The randomness of life seems to give evidence that God may very well not even exist at all.

When we can’t find God in the emptiness of our souls, we tend to throw up defense mechanisms that keep us from being thrown into an abyss. We deny how much we struggle and hurt, we ignore our unanswerable questions and we keep telling ourselves that everything will be alright. We stand firm in our faith, from all outward appearances, declaring our love for Jesus, our love for others, and even profess to be finding our supply of strength from streams of Living Water. And yet, we feel that if we were to hear, “Just trust God,” one more time, we might just be emptied enough to never want to be filled. In a moment of truth, when we’re consumed with relieving the pain behind our problems, we must come to grips with the fact that Christianity offers no simple formula for making life work the way we want it to. We want solutions to our problems, instead of a pathway to God. We disguise our selfish desires for temporary relief rather than allowing that pain, emptiness, to be the very thing that shows us that something inside of us that is desperately wrong.

We create our own obstacles to God. And if we only evaluate God by what we see and feel, we will continue to look to ourselves, loving and clinging to our lives, with all our heart and soul, instead of to God.

As we struggle through our emptiness, another lie seeps into our soul’s reasoning, when we so wrongfully believe that if only God would show up, we’d feel better and our troubles would disappear. But finding God has never been about finding Him. He’s always been there. We’re assured that if we look for Him, we’ll find Him. So that’s not the point.

“You will seek me and find me.”

Jeremiah 29:13 (ESV)

It’s when we find God that we find ourselves. It’s in developing a passion to know Him that we are filled. And until we are filled with a passion to know Him in greater ways than we know Him at this very moment, we will never view our emptiness as an opportunity to experience God in greater ways than we could ever imagine. It’s in understanding the depths of our emptiness that we learn where to go to be filled. But, too often we’re consumed with the reality of our emptiness and we’re unable to get to God.

When emptiness descends upon us, our soul can cry out in gut-wrenching pain; unspeakable, unthinkable pain. We find ourselves unable to endure what we know to be true: life is painful and nothing satisfies. We find no relief, nothing is certain, there is no rest, and our greatest joys have been far outweighed by our present sorrows. We struggle down far too many paths that all lead back to ourselves, and we’re unable to find our way to God. We plead and hope for God to speak, but in a moment when we need Him most, there is nothing. Silence. We find ourselves beyond the reach of anyone but God and we’re suddenly faced with an emptiness that we never thought possible because we can’t even find Him.

As we pause for a moment and take a look at our lives, we realize that we have dug our own cistern, and clearly it is broken. We become consumed with supplying our own souls, arranging our lives around meeting our needs, instead allowing God to fill us with His fullness.

We’re passionately pursuing everything but Him alone, and we find ourselves…empty.

“Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it,

but whoever loses his life will keep it.”

Luke 17:33 (ESV)

If we apply this to our poured out lives, we find that it reads, “Empty yourself and you’ll be filled.” Seems simple enough―but there’s nothing simple about it. We find our souls in twisted frustration because emptying ourselves is contrary to our two primary goals in life: (1) find a way to achieve happiness and (2) influence and manipulate people and their resources to cooperate with achieving that goal. Even as Christians, we claim heaven as our home, immigrants in a foreign land, but we live like we’re natives to the earth. It seems an impossible feat to have a passion for something other than our immediate satisfaction, and our temporary desires matter far more than God’s glory. We work feverishly to fill ourselves and only end up emptier.

We dig our own cisterns because we know that life is overwhelming and intolerable and that truth is simply too painful to admit. We’d rather lie to ourselves and dig our own wells, than to admit to the terrifying truth that we desperately need God—a God who seems more absent than present.

Our emptiness brings us to the end of ourselves. And it’s in our emptiness that we learn that our deepest desires are inconsolable.

“If I find myself in a desire in which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.”―C.S. Lewis

We are thirsty for a reason. We are empty, so that we will have the need to draw water. Our emptiness comes from God. Nothing in this life will satisfy. Try as we might, we continually wake up and look in the mirror, only to find ourselves resembling this guy:

Insatiable―always thirsty, never satisfied. God was right, we’ve dug our own cisterns and they are broken. And it’s important that we understand the cistern, because God wants to show us something. He wants to meet with us, face to face, one on one, but we need to have a full understanding of our current condition.

We’re empty because we’re using a cistern. A cistern is a container that comes in various shapes and sizes around the world. They are used for the purpose of storing water, both above and below ground, but it can’t do what a “well” does. A well taps into a supply of groundwater, like a spring or underground stream. If you know anything about wells, they are built by digging into the earth and inserting reinforcements, so that the interior walls of the well do not collapse.

Wells have been used for centuries and historically people have taken advantage of natural springs and built their settlements near them. People could easily access the water by lowering their buckets, filling them, and pulling them up. Whenever they needed water, they would go to the well.

Cisterns, on the other hand, are designed to store water, not tap into an existing, continual water source. Cisterns were primarily used for collecting rain water―not the same as spring water, mind you. And historically, cisterns were used in dry regions to store water, in the event that a well failed or rainfall ceased. People used them as a backup water supply. With a cistern, someone has to fill it with water. They aren’t wells, which provide a constant “source” of water.

So, what does this have to do with our emptiness in life? A lot. We continually use cisterns to satisfy our thirst, God wants us coming to Him, The Well. We try to contain our happiness and joy within the things of this world, but we’re in a dry region, a sinful one. And God knows that our cisterns will fail to be filled, or worse, simply crack and be rendered useless from being dried out. We fill our cisterns (bank accounts) with money and it runs out…then begins the endless cycle of having to fill it again. We fill our hearts with relationships which help us feel loved…and people hurt us. We try to dull our pain by filling new cisterns of alcohol and drugs, or by consuming our time with useless things to feel temporary relief from the reality that the cistern is not supplying the demands of our “needs”―it has to continually be filled. We’re exhausted from the endless job of filling it and we’re left empty.

Our emptiness directs us to The Well, God Himself. It’s in accepting our emptiness that we can understand how “being thirsty,” helps us to grasp that nothing we can do or experience in this world will ever satisfy us with what our soul yearns for most―we want to be filled . . . in a way that we are satisfied, completely. Our greatest desire is to never be thirsty again.

But our ways are hardly ever like God’s. We need to meet with God over this matter. We need Him to speak to us and break His silence. But, before we meet God, face to face, we need to understand more clearly how it is He works, when it comes to emptiness. We need to understand “The Empty Principle.”

The Empty Principle

Too often, we get it all wrong in life. We assume that God works the way we think He should and we set ourselves up for mammoth disappointments. God’s ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8)…the sooner we accept that, the better off we’ll be. When it comes to emptiness, once again, we get it wrong.

In our daily life, we endlessly strive to preserve what is precious and end up losing it all, and more. We tend to believe that if we’re empty, we have nothing left. And that is certainly true if we’re not connected to God and living out His purposes for our lives. But, if we’re walking in faith, believing His Promises, trusting in Him fully, then He is going to REQUIRE that we’re empty, so that He can fill us and we can be poured out. Huh? God’s way in “emptiness” is this: The more you pour out, the more there is to pour out. Put another way: The emptier we are, the more we can be filled. Ahhh, that’s better. But it still doesn’t make much sense. We think this through and can’t help but reason that if we’re “empty,” we have nothing left, right? Wrong.

We’ll need to go to 2 Kings 4 in the Bible and take a look at this principle…The Empty Principle. The whole thing starts with Elijah going to heaven. Evidently, the sons of the prophets were watching as a chariot of fire came down and took him. And there was a woman who was the wife of one of the sons of the prophets…who died in the whole event.

So, this widow, goes to Elisha (don’t confuse him with Elijah―not one in the same), and tells him that she has nothing left,  her husband’s creditors are coming after her and they are coming to take her two sons away from her to be slaves (2 Kings 4:4). So, Elisha asks her what she has in her home and she tells him she only has one jar of olive oil. In her mind, life is over―she’s empty in more ways than she can count. But, through the “Empty Principle,” she’s got more than enough. Here’s what happens:

3 Elisha said, “Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few. 4 Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.”

5 She left him and shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring. 6 When all the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another one.”

But he replied, “There is not a jar left.” Then the oil stopped flowing.

7 She went and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.”

A miracle. The most famous last words before God shows up are: “I have nothing.” Put many other ways: “I can’t go on. My pain is too deep. I’m empty.” We need to grasp this principle. It’s vital. We’ll never be filled until we do. Here’s the promise through the “Empty Principle”: When God is your Source, there is never a shortage. Through this woman’s emptiness, we’re shown a remarkable miracle and a profound spiritual principle.

We believe that we need to be filled in order for God to use us, but God is looking for those who are empty. If we’re empty, we can be filled. It’s actually quite simple. We look at the widow and see that as long as there was something “empty” that could be filled in the widow’s home, the oil didn’t stop flowing. As long as we’re empty, God can flow through us. Grasp this truth: Emptiness is not the end, it’s the beginning.

We can understand this principle even further as we grasp the point of this miracle: As long as God has empty vessels, people who are wholly yielded to Him, He pours out His Spirit without measure.

“…for God gives the Spirit without limit.”

John 3:34 (NIV)

But, when the vessels have been filled, they must be poured out. If God seems to be emptying your life, removing just about everything you count on and hold dear, you can be sure He’s at work…He’s about to dig a well in your soul.

If we’re the ones filling ourselves, with the passions of this world, we can’t be filled by God― we’re doing the digging and the filling, not God. And we’ll work endlessly to keep filling because we’ll never be satisfied and we can’t live on empty. But, everything we fill ourselves with dulls our ability and desire to be filled by God. Instead of seeing our emptiness as the end, we need to start seeing it as the greatest opportunity to be filled by God Himself. Our problem is that we tend to feel as though we should be filled before we can be poured out―God wants us empty.

It’s in our emptiness that we will be filled by His Spirit…to experience a fullness that we have never imagined. What we learn through this principle is that when you rely in faith on God’s provision as your Source, there is never a shortage. It’s an internal “well” that just continues to pour into you as you pour it out. So, if we’re thirsty, it simply means we’re not being poured out. Although, we’d gladly argue endlessly over that point. It’s through “The Empty Principle” that we learn…as long as God has empty vessels, who are wholly yielded to Him, He pours out His Spirit into us and we will overflow like rivers of living water.

“Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said,

rivers of living water will flow from within them.”

John 7:38 (NIV)

And here’s the sad truth: far too many believers have the Holy Spirit dwelling inside of them, but not flowing out of them. We need to deeply understand The Empty Principle. And we need to fully comprehend that we need to go to the Source that will truly satisfy. Even Job knew this great need and he knew he had to go to the Source Job 23:3 (NIV):

“If only I knew where to find God,

I would go to his dwelling.”

When we’re thirsty, there’s something we need desperately. But, it’s not what we think. What we thirst for doesn’t even compare with what God wants to give us. Our prayers fall far short of God’s best in our lives. He wants to give us so much more than we ever ask for (Ephesians 3:20). And most times, He does, even when we least deserve it―that’s His grace.

So, we hear His promises, we long for all that He gives…the FULLNESS of life. We know what Jesus has said,

“Everyone who drinks this water

will be thirsty again,

but whoever drinks the water

I give them will never thirst.

Indeed, the water I give them will

become in them a spring of water

welling up to eternal life.”

John 4:13-14(NIV)

and we realize that Jesus has what we need. He offers what will quench our undying thirst, and we find ourselves repeating the wise words of a woman who was just as thirsty as we are:

“Give me this water

so that I won’t get thirsty

and have to keep coming

here to draw water.”

John 4:15 (NIV)

You’re ready to be filled. You desperately want your thirst satisfied, so that you will never thirst again, but you look for God and can’t seem to find Him anywhere. Yet, you need to look no further…He’s been waiting for you. He wants to meet with you, one on one…at the well.

.

About the Author

Cherie Hill is the founder of ScriptureNow.com Ministry

which brings the Word of God into over 30 countries around the world. She has a BA in Psychology and is trained in Biblical Counseling through the AACC. She is an Amazon.com Bestselling Christian Living author who spends her time at the feet of Jesus.

Author of:

WAITING on GOD

Hope Being Gone

BE STILL

(Let Jesus Calm Your Storms)

Beginning at The End

(Finding God When Your World Falls Apart)

THE WAYS of GOD

(Finding Purpose Through Your Pain)

empty.

(Living Full of Faith When Life Drains You Dry)

FAITH Under Construction

Table of Contents

Other Bestsellers by Cherie Hill

Copyright

Hope Being Gone

It’s Hopeless

Faith Is

Faith that Stands

Faith Wanted

Beyond the Doubt

Amazing Faith— So Seldom Found

The Focus of Faith

Hope in Faith

Promises of HOPE

BONUS FEATURE: 1st Chapter of BE STILL

BONUS FEATURE: 1st Chapter of THE WAYS of GOD

BONUS FEATURE: 1st Chapter of empty.

About the Author