Do you struggle with trusting God, especially when things seem unclear? It’s common to face uncertainty in life.
In Proverbs 3:5, we’re told to trust the Lord fully and not just rely on our understanding. But what does this mean?
In this blog post, I’ll show you how to trust God when understanding is hard to come by. I’ll also help you to strengthen your faith in challenging times.
The Risk and Reward of Faith in God
Faith in God is a risky thing. Trusting in the Lord means that we’re putting ourselves and sometimes our lives on the line for something we can’t necessarily see. Your situation might be a job.
It might be that you’re trusting God when you don’t understand how He will provide the next rent payment.
No matter what it is. Trusting God in all circumstances can feel dangerous.
Faith requires risk.
Do you remember when you were a child and your mom or your dad gave you a rule of some kind? Maybe they told you not to play with matches or they told you not to watch too much TV every day. I know when I was younger, I never understood why my mom stressed so much about paying attention in school.
School was boring. I was shy and I didn’t have many friends.
There were days when I’d sit there and cry while I did my homework, or I’d sit in class but my mind was everywhere except for that classroom. I imagine myself as an adult, married and being the cool mom that my kids and their friends would love.
As a child, I never understood my parents’ rules. I thought they were too strict and I grew to be a little bit resentful of how much freedom my schoolmates had.
Looking back, as I recently turned 31, I can see what my parents were trying to do.
Trusting God Like a Parent
Learning how to trust God means understanding that He’s like a parent. It means to lean not on your own understanding at all.
My parents were trying to instill a good work ethic in me. My parents were trying to help me understand how to get ahead in life and prepare for life after school.
And I’m incredibly grateful.
God really is like a parent. He has plans we might not understand right now and He sees things that we can’t see in our present.
But that doesn’t mean that God’s plans aren’t good. That doesn’t mean that what He’s putting us through right now doesn’t matter.
We don’t have to understand His plans to trust God completely. We just need to have confidence in the Lord to understand His plans for us.
Finding Faith in an Impossible Situation
I’ve been documenting my travel visa journey for a few weeks now.
Initially, I thought that the visa was a guarantee. After all, I’d already received my work permit, I had money in the bank and I had a great travel record. But unfortunately, none of that mattered to the embassy.
They denied my application.
Then they denied my appeal.
I had spent thousands of dollars up to this point preparing for the move of a lifetime; a new chapter of my life. But after two denials, everything that I had hoped for, everything that I had dreamed of seemed impossible.
That’s probably how Gideon felt when he was put into a position where he had to have faith and trust in God even though his situation seemed impossible.
Trusting God in difficult times means doing what He tells you to do even when it makes no sense.
Gideon’s Unlikely Victory
In the bible, we’re told the story of Gideon. In Judges 7, the bible tells us that Gideon and his men were face to face with an army of over 100,000 soldiers. I can imagine that these soldiers were all physically fit, and were ready to throw down at a moments notice.
Gideon, on the other hand, only had 300 soldiers, some of which I’m sure had never even touched a sword. I can imagine that Gideon probably thought that God had lost his mind.
How could they face so many soldiers on their own?
How could they win?
The bible tells us that God commanded Gideon, “At the point when I advise you to, blow the trumpets, break the pots, and let torchlight out of nowhere sparkle out in the night. It will appear as though a huge battalion is encompassing the camp. It will create mass disorientation, and the opposing army will wind up battling one another.”
And you know what happened? Gideon obeyed. He did exactly what God commanded him to do and he was victorious. Gideon didn’t lean on his own understanding of the situation. He simply trusted in the Lord.
Gideon came to understand the power of trusting God firsthand.
After my second visa denial, I wanted to give up so badly. I even went as far as to tell my parents that I just couldn’t do it anymore. I didn’t have the strength to go any further.
But God said no.
God told me to give it one more try.
So I did.
Sometimes God tells you to do something that appears downright ridiculous—like going into a war with no weapons or applying for a visa after two denials. Faith is trusting God when you don’t understand why or what He’s asking you to do.
You have to trust God completely.
You need to trust Him with all your heart.
How to Trust in the Lord Completely
When I turned in my final visa application, I had a serious conversation with God. I told Him that this was it. This was a situation where I was placing all of my faith on this final application and then I was done.
I wasn’t going to apply anymore or cry over anything. This final trip to Tokyo would be just that- my final and I was trusting God to come through for me.
Not only had I resigned from my job, but I had also left my apartment, told my city hall that I was leaving and had already shipped my boxes ahead of me. I needed God to come through for me.
But if you’re anything like me, it can be hard. And it was. So God had to bring me through a series of steps to get me to a place of trusting Him completely and these are the steps I’ll share with you below:
#1. Discover Who God Is
To trust God completely, it’s vital to know who He is.
It can be hard to have confidence in God when He is a stranger to you.
Dive into the Bible, where His character is revealed. Scripture assures us that God is eternal, the Creator of all things, and unparalleled in His works (Psalm 90:2, Genesis 1:1, Psalm 86:8–10).
The Bible also consistently portrays God as trustworthy, truthful, and all-powerful. Understanding who God is strengthens our trust in Him.
#2. Ask God For His Help
God knows that you’re struggling to trust Him and He wants to help us to trust Him.
In John 14:13-14, we learn that asking in Jesus’ name leads to God giving you an answer. Looking for God’s help in trusting Him strengthens your faith and deepens your relationship with Him.
#3. Cling to God’s Promises
In challenging times, holding onto God’s promises provides solace.
Verses like Deuteronomy 31:8 and Psalm 27:1 remind us of God’s presence and protection.
When you cling to these assurances, you physically grasp God’s unchanging hand. This not only reinforces your trust as He works in your life but also builds confidence in who He says He is.
#4. Surrender Control to God
Trusting God involves relinquishing control. Proverbs 3:5 tells us to trust the Lord with all our hearts and not rely solely on our understanding.
Surrendering control means allowing God to take the wheel, especially in areas beyond your control.
1 Peter 5:7 urges us to cast our worries onto God, acknowledging that He can manage what’s beyond our reach.
#5. Remember God’s Faithfulness
Make a record of moments of God’s faithfulness in your life. These reminders, even of small daily matters, boost your confidence to trust Him more.
Emphasize God’s goodness rather than fixating on problems. By doing so, you’ll maintain faith, even whenyou just can’t understand. (Romans 15:13).
All my love,
Thanks for this message . It gives people true hope for the future even when it seems impossible.
Aww you are very welcome. Have a blessed day!
Thank you so much for this Article. I needed every bit of it. May God bless you and continue to give you more wisdom
I Googled “When you don’t understand Gods plan” … I lost my job from the pandemic and prior to this left a very financially stable and lucrative career for start-up. It was a risk the family agreed on, took a major cut in pay that financially really brought the house down. The debt accumulated from these 5 years and subsequently, no work for 2 years due to Covid, the recovery (I took a non-profit role that is slower paced than I prefer and also pays about a 1/3 of what I would typically earn….) Needless to say, it’s been almost an 8 year season or I suppose maybe 6 because the first 2 years of startup was go-go-run and felt exhilarating and mission driven. But even 6 years is a long financial season to be in and now, as I have committed to job searching again, every single door that opens and feels really exciting and possibility of something new and also financially sound, the door slams: Reorg, relocation, etc. Nothing related to me or my value to the role, but quite literally, dramatic adjustments to something I just had a 2nd or 3rd interview and “plans changed.” So, I “googled” When you don’t understand Gods plan” and this blog post came up! Thank you! I needed this reminder. I am feeling lost and defeated and despite knowing it is all under Gods plan! It is accumulating guilt and misunderstanding why something just won’t “click.” Why after the multiple Visa attempts, it just won’t come through…. I appreciate this story and am excited to read more and have found “She Is A Message.” Thank you and God bless.
PS: using my middle name since this got so personal 😉
Thank you for this, I believe that He has guided me to read this and that things are going to change for the best and everyone who reads your post Amen :)♥️
I came across this because I am also having a very challenging time trusting God in this season of My Life. And I am putting the situation that now me and my daughter is staying in a hotel and I have no money or a job and I am very afraid I am very angry because the decision that I made was something I prayed about and, felt like the Lord was leading me to the decision that I made to reconcile my marriage with my ex-husband.
When needless to say he has turned so evil towards us after he my ex-husband came to another state and relocated Us in the state that he was living in. Not even giving the the relationship a chance to heal became very controlling and he had me and my daughter put out of the house. So we’re living in the state that I can’t even afford to live…. in it’s just a big mess.
So needless to say, we are back living in the state that my ex-husband of rooted us from but I have to start all over again after he promised to give me money to relocating get back established bunch of lies.
This is so hurtful not just for myself but, my daughter how she feels towards this male . So she’s watching me how it’s affecting me my relationship with the Lord and then I have to be a role model for her and try to keep my faith in the Lord when I don’t understand why the Lord would allow us to hurt and become homeless.
I get sick to my stomach just thinking about all this we have to endure. So for me trusting God is very challenging because this didn’t just affect me , this affect my daughter as well and , for that guy to be so cold-hearted and don’t even care that we have no place to call home, I have no money it’s sickening.
God bless you situation, I would love to know how you are doing after these couple months because the same thing is happenening to me and my boys except without being in a different state. I reconciled back with my ex-husband, he was physically, emotionally, and mentally abusive. I left my apartment to move in with him and all he did was kick me out every month and abuse me. I’m back living with my parents with my kids and keeping asking God why do I have to keep being brought down while the wicked get to flourish and have no repercussions for their actions. I feel hurt by God and I don’t want to feel like that about my God. I’ve been praying for some type of answer but I haven’t fully received one yet. I’m back at square one again and don’t know what to do bur to keep going. I pray that God will bless the people that really love Him.
I love how you simply explain this topic, may sound simple in life but when you are in it it’s really hard but indeed, I have to let go and let God. I have this very thing in my heart that needed to trust God about it. At first it was pretty hard because i was seeking a logical explanation about it because that’s how I deal with my life, all things about my life. Now, I am in a situation that I cannot get any answer, I got really frustrated, did things that literally hurts my soul and for surely hurts God seeing me that way. God is so good that when I reached the point of breakdown, God met me there he simply whispered in my heart that no matter what happened I am secure in his love. He wants me to trust his love for me, that everything may fail but not him. It was a life changing moment. I have everything in my heart. He is indeed with us. We are secure in his love .
” Faith is obeying God even when you don’t really understand why or what He’s asking you to do.”
If you don’t even know WHAT God is asking you to do, how are you supposed to do it?
“Having faith in God means doing what He tells you to do even when it seems absurd;”
How are you supposed ot know what God wants you to do? It isn’t like God spells it out and says, “Do this”
“After my second visa denial, I wanted to give up so badly. I even went as far as to tell my parents that I just couldn’t do it anymore. I didn’t have the strength to go any further. But God said no. God told me to give it one more try. ”
How do you know God said no? How did Got tell you to give it one more try?
It’s so hard to trust God ,I have trust issues
Did you get your visa finally?
I did!
Thank you so much for this, it really helped me ❤️
You’re welcome
This was beautiful and needed. Came at the right time and your words injected the right amount of wisdom I needed today. Cried from beginning to end. THANK YOU so much for writing this blog ang allowing the holy Spirit to lead you!
Thank you so much! I truly needed to be reminded of these things. May God Bless You!!
God bless you too 😀