Life in this world is a very difficult journey. It is one that is fraught with much suffering and uncertainty. When a problem enters our life, fear grips us. In our desperation to solve the problem, some Christians might even consider doing things that displease God. There was a Christian who was facing a sickness that endangered his well-being. He got so frightened that he sought the help of a Taoist god. Thank God that he was not cured. Had he been cured, he might have continued in this grievous sin and invoked the fearful wrath of God. Since then, he has returned to Jesus. Sufferings in life can indeed drive us to break faith with God and commit serious sins. Are you considering doing something sinful in order to solve your problems? Don’t! Come back to God. Have faith in God. But what is faith?
First, faith requires you to believe that “He exists.” When trouble comes, we pray and ask God to help us. Sometimes God seemed not to have heard our prayers because the problem did not go away after much prayer. God doesn’t seem real or if He is real, His presence—love, peace, power—is not felt. During such times, you must choose to believe that He knows, cares, and will work all things to your advantage. He exists.
Second, faith requires you to “earnestly seek Him.” When a fearful problem intrudes into our life, we sometimes become so traumatized that we loose interest or “have no mood” for anything that does not solve our problem. Thus some Christians stop being involved in spiritual matters including reading the Bible, praying, serving, caring for other Christians, evangelism, etc. “Since spiritual things,” so these discouraged Christians reason, “cannot possibly solve my problems. I am not interested.” Such a Christian is what Jesus refers to in Matt 13:20-21:
The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. (Matt. 13:20-21)
When times are difficult, we must ask God for wisdom: “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you” (James 1:5). At the same time, we must continue to “earnestly seek Him.” This means that we must not loose our fervency in following and serving the Lord. No, sufferings in life is not a time when we start to look away from the Lord and the Lord’s business. If you are going to be happy, you need to be blessed by God as He alone is the giver of all good things. If you wish to be blessed by God, you must continue to follow and serve Him earnestly.