Shaken? Or STRENGTHENED?

Faith is definitely being shaken right now.

That's the message a dear friend of mine sent earlier this week, in response to some very hard things which are happening in her life.
And I get it. Oh, I do.
Because I have also had very hard things in my life.
Sometimes those things feel like they have knocked the wind right out of you, and all you want to do is quit. Throw in the towel. Give up on it all and hide away in some safe place where you don't think you'll experience any more struggle or disappointment.

Have you been there?

So I was praying for my friend who felt like her faith was being shaken, asking God to strengthen her faith. And it's like He said to my heart, That's exactly what I'm doing, dear one.
I paused, and I thought about it. And I smiled because I recognized - that's what HE does.
I've read about it in the Bible.
I've seen it in the lives of people I know.
And I have experienced it in my own.
God allows hard times to come into our lives for various reasons - all in His perfect wisdom. And one of the ways HE uses them is to grow our faith. We go through a trial, a struggle, a storm of great proportions in which we feel lost and hopelessly out of control. We wonder, God, where are You? Why are you allowing this pain? I was sure You are good, but now I'm feeling like my faith is being shaken. God? Are You there???

Have you been there, too???

Then God shows His faithfulness.
He delivers us from the struggle.
He demonstrates His power and we find ourselves face-to-the-ground in awe of the One who can do all things. The One who is in control, who sees everything, and who knows what He's doing. We worship Him for who He is, and for what He has done. And when we catch our breath we discover that the faith we thought was being shaken has actually grown more than we could have imagined.
Thus, as I tried to encourage my friend this week, so I now exhort you: When you feel like the world is caving in, and you don't know what to do - Look to the One who can do all things, and trust Him to make your faith strong in the midst of the storm.