There are times when God seems to be silent and uncaring towards us. These situations aren't meant for us to see that He has abandoned us because He can't do that. Rather, these situations give us a lot of opportunities to see how good God is.
Have you ever experienced a time of trouble when God was silent and appeared to have no concern? Here's how you can trust Him despite that moment of trial and testing.
1. Hold on to His promises
God will never break any promise. Think about it. Whatever He promises, He is faithful to bring it to pass. Consider Abraham who received God's promise more than two decades before the promise came to reality. Hebrews 6:15 says he "waited patiently, and he received what God had promised."
In the same way, we should also learn to wait on God for Him to fulfill His promises. He is faithful and will never forget His promises unlike us humans who tend to forget. Keep in mind Numbers 23:19, which says:
"God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?"
2. Trust in the Lord and do what is good
When we are surrounded by our troubles yet God appears to be silent, we can hear and obey the instruction and encouragement that David, a man who went through a lot of trouble himself, gives to us in Psalm 37:3-4:
"Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart's desires."
When the temptation to bail out on God and jump ship to our own means come up very strongly, know that God is good and is able to weather the storms with us and for us. Trust Him to do what He does best – doing what is good for us – and do your part in obeying His Word.
3. Keep praying
When God seems silent, the real question there is not whether He listens to us when we pray or not. Rather, the question is if we will continue to trust Him no matter what happens. When you are tempted to believe that He doesn't care anymore, consider all the good that He has already done for you and pray to Him. Paul instructs us in Philippians 4:6-7,
"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."
