Moments that rock your faith
She was nine when her father died. Today she found out her marriage was ending. She has five children to raise with no father. The phone rang just now, and she found out she has breast cancer. She is struggling with forgiveness from a devastating hurt in her past that no one need go through. And she was so excited about her first baby, but soon after finding out about her pregnancy, she miscarried.
These are real women in the midst of life-altering moments. Moments where their faith is tested because the world as they knew it no longer exists. Their faith is literally being rocked to its very core. It’s in these moments that we feel like running for our lives with hands over our eyes so as to hide our fear and shut out the world.
The problem is … we can‘t hide. We can‘t make it all go away or shut out the world. We CAN run though. But run to what? We can run, searching for that which we think will make everything better, or we can try running away. The problem is the thing we‘re running from will simply meet us where we stop. What will we do? There will always be moments of uncertainty, when our reality isn‘t what we wanted or expected.
We can choose to try something different. We can run, but not away. We can run toward. We can run into the very arms of the One who is always with us. The One who promises never to leave us or forsake us. The One who actually has the power to carry us through our moments of deepest darkness. We can run to Jesus, and in doing so learn to live fully ALIVE in Him in the midst of our deepest fears.
This is our sixth and final week of our ALIVE series. The week when the rubber meets the road and faith is put to its ultimate test. These moments are the ones that determine what we truly believe, and it‘s in these moments that we can dare to live fully ALIVE in Him!
There is a verse that has become my “9-1-1” call over the last decade. It‘s my emergency scripture. The verse I go to when my world is being rocked. It‘s Psalm 91:1. Read it below.
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
The Lord has shown me some powerful things in this short little verse. First of all, there are two names of God in this verse, “Most High“ and “Almighty.“
Most High is from the Hebrew word Elyon. It refers to God being the supreme and sovereign ruler of the Universe.Elyon is in charge.
Almighty is from the Hebrew Shaddai, which means all-sufficient and all-powerful. Shaddai makes the impossible possible. He is the supreme satisfier. He is the One who desires to bless us beyond our wildest imaginations.
Let‘s take a look at a few other words in this verse.
- Dwells – to stay or remain at all times
- Shelter – hiding place, secret place
- Abide – to cause to rest or take refuge
- Shadow – shade or protection
This verse illustrates that I am to stay with and take shelter in or hide in the Most High — my sovereign,
in-control God. In doing this I find rest in being close to (in the shadow of) my all-sufficient and all-powerful God.
How can I live fully ALIVE in Him during the“emergency” moments of my life? I can practice this mindset and choose to default to this way of thinking in the midst of my struggle. I can remember that God has a plan for my life and for those whom I love. I can choose joy in the midst of my struggle because I can choose Jesus and Jesus is joy!
Is this an easy journey? No. Jesus never promised us easy, though. In fact, John 16:33 says the opposite.
I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.
Oh how I wish life were easier, but it‘s not. It‘s full of twists and turns and ups and downs, good days, bad days and all in between. The key to living fully ALIVE in Him is the reality of knowing that Jesus did conquer death and in doing so He overcame everything in the world and lives victoriously in Heaven with His Father.
Women with cancer, women with marriages that need fixing, depression, single moms doing their best to make it on their own, women with all sorts of hurts … all of these things shake our faith, but Jesus has the power to help you and me live with confidence and joy in Him! Will you choose to run to Him and not from Him in your struggle, and in doing so learn to live fully ALIVE in Him?
You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Psalm 16:11
Below are five practical steps that can help us when the earth shifts and we don’t know what to do.
Recognize that God is in control of your situation.
Rely on Him to get you through. Don‘t run away in fear, anger or frustration; lean heavily into them.
Refuse to give Satan a foothold.
Remain close to Jesus (under His umbrella of protection).
Rejoice in knowing that Almighty God is with you and will see you through.
Have a wonderful, joy-filled week and remember to always seek to live fully ALIVE in Him …
Jacqueline C. Heider
Director of Discipleship & Women’s Ministry