Trusting God Through Failure
Every single one of us has experienced moments that have tested our faith. Maybe it’s an outcome we didn’t want, a prayer that went unanswered, or life just isn’t turning out the way you hoped right now. We have all felt during these times like we have failed in some way, and it can be hard to turn to God in those moments. In Disobedient God, pastor Albert Tate walks us through how to trust God in our lowest moments. Read an excerpt on trusting God through failure.
An excerpt from Disobedient God:
‘One of my favorite hymns is “ ’Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus.” It tells us that it is sweet just to trust Him— just to take Him at His word, and rest upon His promise. My favorite part is the last line when it says, “Oh, for grace to trust him more.”
When I hear it and when I sing it, I hear failure baked into the phrase. It’s this idea that I wanna trust You and I’ll get grace to trust You more. But then I fail and oh, I’ll get more grace so I can trust You more the next time. And then I’ll fail. And then I’ll get more grace to trust You more the next time. And yes, there is progression. There is growth. I do get better, but there is still failure. Friends, failure will be a part of our story. Sin and falling will be a part of our story, but oh for grace to trust Him more the next time. We are always praying for greater grace. A greater grace, a greater failure, a greater grace— it’s a pattern. That’s why it is so sweet to trust in Jesus. Even when He feels like a disobedient God, what He really is, is a God who’s worthy to be trusted.
So, I pray that we would find friends who hang in the dust and push us to accountability, to hope, to purpose, and to God. And I pray that we would find rest in God’s sovereignty— that we would know that at the beginning of time, He was there, and at the end of time, He will be there. So in the meantime, may we find ourselves right here in His presence. And may we rest well, knowing that we were designed with this kind of crisis of wind and storm and chaos in mind. In order to rest well, may we have a peace that passes all understanding and, Father, would you guard our hearts and our minds every step of the way. And to that end, we surrender our dreams so that we might get after Yours, may our life be used for the fulfillment of Your hopes, Your dreams, and Your purpose for the earth, and may our heart’s desires be Your desires. And, finally, when failure comes and when sin gets the best of our hand, oh for grace to trust You more— may we know the sweetness of trusting You. Amen.”’
In this powerful guidebook, the lead pastor of Fellowship Church demonstrates how the moments that test our faith are the moments God uses to direct our hearts to the one thing we truly desire most: a relationship with Christ.
When the people of Israel, those who had witnessed the most abundant and inexplicable acts of God, grew tired of waiting for Moses to come off the mountain, they made a calf of gold. It was easier for them to make a new god than to continue serving a God that didn’t conform to their schedule and expectations.
Just like the Israelites in the desert, we are all fundamentally longing for God… but who and what are we actually reaching for and serving? Disobedient God addresses the things we do when we feel ignored, inconvenienced and frustrated by God. What things are we reaching for in our life? Are we reaching for porn when we long for intimacy? Reaching for success when we long for security? We would never say that we have replaced God, but our actions tell a different story. Whether we are trying to replace God, trying to run away or trying to perform for Him, we have no mindset to deal with a disobedient God. Disobedient God is a book for people dealing with this disappointment and interested in properly understanding and loving the God they’ve misunderstood.
This is not a step-by-step instruction manual for how to react when things are difficult; rather, it is a way of understanding God that leads people to discover the relationship with God that they were always meant for.