For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7
As Christians, it is easier for us to hold on to faith when everything is blissful and we are happy. But the true test of our faith is when we are in troubling times. The true test of our faith is when things are going wrong in our life.
In such times, it becomes difficult to hold on to faith. Because this is the time that fear starts creeping in and instead of having faith that this is just a passing moment and we are going to be fine, we tremble, our faith waver and we let fear in.
What is faith?
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1
The scripture above is how the Bible defines faith. It says that faith is the substance of the things hoped for. This means faith is the confidence or the assurance we have for the things that we hope for, even though there is no evidence that we will get what we hope for.
Choose faith over fear
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7
As Christians, God has given us the spirit of power, love and a sound mind. He didn’t give us the spirit of fear. Fear is nothing. It is only an emotion that keeps us from moving forward in life. That is why it is important to choose faith over fear.
Choosing faith means you choose to go forward. Choosing faith means you are not afraid of what is to come. Choosing faith means you believe in something greater. Choosing faith means you trust in God.
So how do you choose faith?
Keep your eyes on God
In troubling times, it is important that you keep your eyes on God, not on your troubles. Remember that God is in control. So, keep your eyes on Him.
When Jesus was in the boat with His disciples and the storm came, the disciples kept their eyes on the storm and so they were afraid, they feared for their lives and when they woke Him up, He calmed the storm and asked them “where is your faith?”(Matthew 8:23-27)
The disciples knew that Jesus was in the boat with them. They knew He had the power to save them, But in that time of the storm, they kept their eyes on how heavy the storm was. So they thought Jesus didn’t care that they were in the storm. They lost faith and so they asked him “do you not care that we are perishing?”
This is what we do when times are hard for us. We think so much about our problems and we begin to drown in them and we begin to question if God even cares about us.
But this is the time you are supposed to keep the faith. This is the time you have to keep your eyes on God, remember that he is in control and when He speaks the storm obeys.
Remember you are a survivor
Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
Psalm 34:19
But the Lord delivers him out of them all.
You’ve been through other troubling times in life and just like the rest, this too shall pass. Yes, at the moment, it feels like it’s never going to stop and you are never going to be okay.
But you have to remember all the other times when things felt like they were never going to be alright and yet somehow you pulled through all of them because God has got you.
And it doesn’t matter what life throws at you. It doesn’t matter how many times things go wrong in your life He’s always got you and He is going to deliver you from this too, just as He did in the past.
Pray
Call upon Me in the day of trouble;
Psalm 50:15
I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.
Pray, pray, pray and pray some more. In troubling times you have to be more consistent with prayer than ever. So pray and don’t stop praying until God rescues you and when He does, sing praises. (James 5:13)
Talk to people you can trust
Sometimes a talk with the right person might be all we need to keep the faith. This can be our spouse, a relative, a friend, a pastor or anyone else we can trust.
When we talk to such people, they can remind us why we need to hold on to God. Some of them can even tell you about their own troubling times that God saved them from to remind you that God saves and He will save you too.
Read your Bible
In order to keep the faith, read your Bible. The Bible can comfort you and give you the strength to carry on. Some Bible verses that will comfort you and strengthen your faith in troubling times are;
The name of the Lord is a strong tower;
Proverbs 18:10
The righteous run to it and are safe.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
Isaiah 43:2
And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned,
Nor shall the flame scorch you.
The Lord is my light and my salvation;
Psalm 27:1
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?
God is our refuge and strength,
Psalm 46:1
A very present help in trouble.
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Romans 8:18
Cast your burden on the Lord,
Psalm 55:22
And He shall sustain you;
He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.
Fear not, for I am with you;
Isaiah 41:10
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.
Deuteronomy 31:6
Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
1 Peter 5:7
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
Proverbs 3:5-6
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.
The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears,
Psalm 34:17
And delivers them out of all their troubles.
The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart,
Psalm 34:18
And saves such as have a contrite spirit.
When you are going through troubling times, keep the faith no matter what. Hold fast. Believe that you serve a living God and there is nothing He can’t do. Have faith even when it doesn’t make sense. Have faith even when logical reasoning says to give up. Have faith…because God saves.
Check out our free 30-day faith over fear Bible study toolkit. It is designed to comfort you and remind you of God’s promises during this time of uncertainty.
