Trusting God Series: Seeing Beyond Your Circumstances
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“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”- 2 Corinthians 4:18
The Unseen Realm
One lesson we need to learn when it comes to trusting God is His work in the unseen realm. All He does and is, how He moves and shifts takes place in the unseen. We know Him and accept Him by faith, and He is always doing so much more than what we see. His unseen activity needs to be our focus.
The days leading up to speak at Women’s Conference in Arizona, I was depleted from the non-stop busyness of life at church and activities with our teenage daughters. I was crabby, exhausted, and my usual sunny disposition had up and left. My hubby even noticed. I landed late in Arizona and crawled into bed at my parent’s winter home. The next morning I got up early, found a cup of coffee and plopped myself in a comfy chair on the patio. The warmth enveloped me as I relaxed in the lounge chair. As I lifted my eyes, there were the Superstition Mountains, literally in my parents back yard. They stood strong, proud, and clothed in desert red.
The moment I settled back and looked at the mountain, the Spirit whispered these words from Psalms to my weary soul: “I will lift my eyes to the mountains-where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” -Psalm 121:1-2
I had been doing everything but lifting my eyes. My eyes were downcast and focused on the things in front of me: the long to-do-list, the worries which kept me awake at night, and the what-if’s of the future. No wonder I was left depleted and spent. As I sat on the patio enjoying my coffee, Papa said, “Just look to me, child. You have to keep your eyes on Me. When you focus on the things in front of you, it overwhelms you, but when you see Me, you know help is here.”
That morning was a confirmation of a lesson I had learned years ago. Focusing on our difficult circumstances will only make our days miserable. As we grow in our relationship with God, we are able to realize what we see in front of us isn’t what matters. What we believe to be true about God in relationship to our circumstances is what matters most.
Look Beyond Your Circumstances
When life gets hard or we stuck with pain, our natural inclination is to focus on the problem. It consumes our every thought, and we react instead of respond. It’s okay to acknowledge the difficulty, but it can’t become our focus because we’ll be stuck in the pain, loss, disappointment. We feel exhausted, spent, and anything but thankful or joyful. So, what can we do differently?
We need to shift our gaze to our Maker. We need to look straight into His face so we can see His goodness. When our eyes our focused on our situation we lose God. Looking at Him and moving closer to Him will help our troubles fade.
We can train ourselves to rise above our troubles. “He brought me into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me.” - 2 Samuel 22:20 When we imagine ourselves in a safe place with God, we have room to breathe and to gain proper perspective.
The unseen realm of God needs to become as familiar to you as this world. The unseen becomes more visible as you cultivate and grow your relationship with God. This takes time and intention.
This world is only temporary and any situation we face is only temporary in light of eternity. There will come a time in heaven when every tear will be wiped away and every loss and broken heart will be restored forever. Eternity is a hard thing to grasp, but being in God’s Presence forever surely sound easier than this life.
God is always doing so much more than what we can see. He’s working behind the scenes, shifting, moving, preparing, and guiding. He is never still. At just the right time, He will reveal His plans. The waiting is usually the hardest for us. Trust grows as we wait, as long as we don’t allow bitterness to take root in our hearts.
Learn to focus on the qualities of God such as His faithfulness, love, compassion, goodness, helpfulness, and redemption. Look to Him for strength to persevere and be tenacious in your pursuit of God. It’s easy to quit trusting, but when we wait and hold on to God, His goodness will be revealed. If it doesn’t happen on earth, it will surely happen in heaven.
God said we will have trouble in this life, but this life is not the final word and our circumstances are not the end of the story. God is in the middle of the trouble, and as we train ourselves to look to Him, we will experience His faithfulness, love and peace.
Dear God, sometimes I get so focused on my troubles that I lose you completely. Give me the ability to lift my eyes to you. Help me recognize I need to look up. Help me understand there is an unseen realm where you live and move, and I want to be more aware of that than my earthly situation. Help me move closer to You, so I can see you at work behind the scenes. I thank you God that you are always doing so much more in my life, on my behalf, than what I see. I want to trust you God, please help me.
Still Struggling To Trust God?
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