Trusting God In Times Of Uncertainty
“God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Numbers 23:19
As I drove toward the sun, the sight of a rainbow caught my attention. The colors were definite but there was no full arch, only a small marking in the sky. I waited for the car to round the curve to see if I could spot the remainder of the promise in the sky. It appeared to me as one half of a set of quotation marks.
The rainbow was the sign of promise that God placed in the sky reminding Noah of His promise to never again destroy the earth with flood. (Genesis 9:13-17) So each time that I see the rainbow, I smile remembering that God is the God of promise. It is His sign in the sky to bring to remembrance all He is and all He has promised.
Now a couple of days later, I am still reflecting on the one quotation mark in the sky. As we know, quotation marks enclose direct statements, words or phrases. The mark puts emphasis on what was spoken.
It’s as if the sky was declaring: God said, “______________
The truth is what God says is complete but we wait for the fulfillment. We can only see in part, but we believe even though we cannot see. Isn’t this what faith is?
On this journey of faith, we often wait for what God says. We stand in the middle of uncertainty and we don’t know what God says. We know His answer will come, but we must wait until He speaks. By faith we wait to hear Him, but until we hear what He says, we live on His promise.
God’s promises don’t always appear to be true. They feel open ended, incomplete, unfulfilled. Just because I couldn’t see the full rainbow did not mean it wasn’t there. After “Googling” for information about rainbows, I saw the truth rise to the top. Here is what I found.
“Theoretically rainbows are always created in complete circle, but how you see a rainbow depends on where you are standing.” (Quota.com)
“If you could get up high enough, you’d see that some rainbows continue below the horizon seen from closer to sea level. Mountain climbers sometimes see more of a full-circle rainbow, though even a high mountain isn’t high enough to show you the whole circle.” (Earthsky.org)
The way we view the promises of God is dependent on our standing. We have to get above this earthly thinking and look up to His face. We need to be mountain climbers looking for the eternal instead of the temporal.
So what do we do when life is uncertain and all we can see is a partial rainbow, part of the promise? We do what Abraham did. We refuse to waver in unbelief. We stand on unshakable ground which is God’s word. We don’t fill in the gap with our own thoughts, what if’s or wishful thinking. We fill in the unseen with what we know God has said.
God had told Abram that he would be the father of many nations and yet he was childless. God told Abram that he would inherit all of the land that he saw, but God did not give him any details concerning how He would deliver on the promises. Abram trusted the Word God spoke to him. He believed. And eventually it all happened just as God promised. (Gen. 15)
Let’s stand in faith believing God. Uncertainty can have the power to manipulate us and tempt us to doubt and to take matters in our own hands. We can quickly fill in the blanks instead of trusting God. Ask God for faith to wait and believe with great expectation that God of promise always fulfills.
Promise Starters:
God said,
“I will never leave or forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6
“I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10
“I will deliver you.” Psalm 50:15
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” Isaiah 43:2
“When you pray, I will answer you. When you call to Me, I will respond.”
The Lord said, “I have loved you with an everlasting love.” Jeremiah 31:3