Finding Trust in the Dark Times

We read the story of David and Goliath, but feel no stress or anxiety because we know how it ends. We know that a very young David killed the giant with five stones and a sling shot, and then presented his enemy’s severed head to the armies of Israel.

We read about Jonah being swallowed by the whale, or David being chased by King Saul, but we do not worry about their well-being. We know that Jonah will survive, and we know David will go on to become king.

No sweat.

My grandson is fascinated by the story of the Titanic. Even though he’s only six years old, he’ll watch two-hour documentaries on this fated ship. But somehow, in the back of his mind, he knows it will (SORTA) be okay in the end.

He knows that, even though nearly 1,500 people died, there were many survivors who went on to have children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc. He also knows, even at his young age, that what they learned from this disaster will change maritime law. Many lives in the future will be saved because of the lessons from this disaster.

Even the story of Hitler, as horrendous and awful as it is, does not leave us in distress because we know he was defeated. Even with all the horror and death, we know that, eventually, he will die and the entire Nazi regime will be toppled.

But what of these victims while their story was being played out? What terror did they experience in the middle of their story?

I dare say they were not wholly calm, patient and at peace while these terrific events were unfolding. It’s easy for us to read about these kinds of things, but not so easy to experience them.

You may be going through a terrible time right now, and it feels like you will be swallowed up in darkness and grief. It feels so horrible, in fact, you don’t even know if you will survive it.

If we truly believe our lives are fully controlled by God, however, we have to trust Him. Noah began building the boat which would save the lives of him, his family and every surviving animal on the planet over 100 years before the rains began.

He did not build the ark with a full understanding of future events. We can look back on the story and rest in the fact that he and his family will live, even while they are being taunted by their neighbors as the ship was being built. Even while living in a smelly, floating zoo for months on end. We know the end game, and we know that, while horribly tragic, everything will eventually be okay.

What I am suggesting is to try and find peace in the midst of the storm. Ask the Lord for patience and peace, and then let it happen.

We do not know our end game, but we have to put all of our trust and hope in the One who does.

We may not know how our story is going to end, but if we believe God is the one scripting our tale, then we have to trust He will get us through this tumultuous time.

We’re in the middle, but the end has already been written. Don’t sweat the small stuff; we’ll get there.

“You can be sure that God will take care of everything you need, his generosity exceeding even yours in the glory that pours from Jesus. (Philippians 4:19 MSG)”

We bought the ceramic piece below, featuring an angel and two little children, when my son, now 19, was in grade school. I remembered my Grandma Weddle having a picture of this statue, and it brought me such comfort.

I asked him if he knew who it was, and prepared to teach him about Guardian Angels. But his response nearly brought tears to my eyes.

He pointed to the angel, and said, “That’s Mommy!” He pointed to the little boy and said, “That’s me,” and then pointed to the girl and said, “that’s Sissy!” referring to his older sister.

He never worried about where food or shelter were coming from, just fully trusted it would be there. He knew mommy and daddy protected him.

I am suggesting we try and trust in the Lord the way Trey always trusted us. The way he still does.

It is not easy, and will not happen overnight, but we need to begin to trust that God will take care of us.

Look back on your life, on all the times you thought you would be destroyed by disaster, calamity, grief or fear, but somehow it turned out okay. At the time, it was very painful and stressful, but you did make it.

We have to believe the Lord has our best interests at heart, and will bring us through the storm.

Blessings.