Thank you for your prayers for me.
I saw the surgeon this morning and will be seeing two oncologists—one for advising on taking a hormone inhibitor and another, a radiation oncologist, about having radiation.
The “tumor board” wants me to have one or the other. My third possible choice is to do neither. So Larry and I will need lots of wisdom. Thanks for praying along with us!
How Can I Know I’m Trusting God?
Throughout this journey, I’ve examined my heart daily in order to grow in my trust in God. As a result, I began asking myself, “How can I know I’m trusting God?” It’s been a fascinating topic. Of course, not a new one as we are always wondering that very thing during our spiritual journeys, right?
So here’s some scattered thoughts.
Feelings can be fickle and don’t necessarily indicate to what degree I’m trusting God. My feelings seemed at times to run away with me even though I’m trusting God by reciting truths, quoting Scriptures and requesting prayer…even in the midst of being completely assured in my mind that God knows exactly what He’s doing.
But God made me human and He gives us flight or fight responses that arise automatically. My heart might beat harder and I might wake up in the night thinking and sometimes feeling panicked.
I’ve valued more than ever using exercise along with prayer to deal with the natural human responses. So I’m more assured than ever that feelings don’t always indicate our spiritual pulse. We should use them as possible indicators but they aren’t always dependable.
Along with examining feelings, is making a choice to repeat truths even though there’s no immediate result. Second Corinthians 10:5 is one of my favorite verses: “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
I’ve often told you how taking every thought captive is like seeing each thought as an arrow coming toward our minds and hearts. We need to grab ahold of that thought and examine it and ask, “Is this the truth?” If it’s not, I can then throw it away. Reject it and think of the truth. If it is truth, I can receive it and meditate upon it. Of course, the truths of the Bible are the key.
Does it align with biblical truth and especially about who God is–in truth?!
That leads to the third thought. Depending upon who God is as described in the Bible is absolutely a primary brick in the building of trust. I’ve mentioned this before. Regardless of circumstances or anything else, God will continue to be good, righteous, loving, kind, gracious, merciful, faithful, and yes, wrathful against evil and sin. His wrath is a part of His goodness because it refers to Him being just. I try to remember, “What does this thought say about who God is?” If it is in alignment with God’s nature, then I can welcome the thought and know I’m trusting God.
Finally, God loves me. When I’m rehearsing that He loves me, I know I’m trusting God. I trust God because God loves me and wants the best for me. The world system says love means everything going well and no struggles. The world system says God is only loving if what happens is the way I think it should be. He knows what is best and there are so many verses that say He does allow difficulties and trials. Just for one is:
Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. (James 1:2-4 NIV).
I know I’m trusting God when I focus on believing God wants to use my struggles for my maturity and growth–and for His glory.
So there’s some off-the-cuff ideas. If you have additional thoughts, I’d love to hear them.
As I said so many many times before, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate knowing you are praying and you care about me. You care about Larry and our family. Certainly, whatever and whenever trust has consumed me, your prayers have contributed. The Apostle Paul wrote, “…for I know that through your prayers and God’s provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance.” (Philippians 1:19). At the least, my deliverance means fighting the fears of the enemy and taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.
Thank you! I love you!
Praying for wisdom, discernment, and God’s guidance; for not only you and Mr. Larry, but also your care team. Keep fighting my friends.
Thank you, J.D.
I’m joining with the others praying for you and your family in this decision, as well as your care team. I actually have James 1:3-4 tattooed on my ankle, along with a hummingbird over an ocean wave. Hummingbirds are a symbol of endurance for me. There is one breed that will fly with those tiny little bodies and wings over oceans for 500 miles when they migrate. I’ve seen them buzzing around my feeders during Santa Anna winds in CA. They still fly in wind that would blow my patio furniture everywhere. I know that God does indeed, work all things together for good, so regardless of how big those storm waves get, I can keep my wings out to soar with him. That verse reminds me to let him finish his work. Nothing is wasted. Love and hugs!
Thank you so much for sharing such beautiful insights, Bobbie. I love hummingbirds. We had a lot in Southern California. Now that we’ve moved to Idaho, I’m eager to see them when Spring comes. I don’t think they like the snow! They have headed to wherever they migrate to. Great info about their migration. Isn’t God creative and amazing? Thanks for lifting our hearts in praise of God.
A Christian I knew told me once that knowledge should come first, then feelings. He meant that feelings should validate knowledge, not dictate what is true or not. I find that helpful in my trust issues. As you wrote so well above, we must examine thoughts, not let them direct us by our feelings. We live an evidential faith. God has given us the means to discern truth. HE is Truth, of course. I find that when I stick to the Bible as my yardstick, no feelings take me off target, though like you say, we’re only human. It’s so nice to abide (there’s that word again!) in TRUTH.
Deb, this is such significant truths and encouragement. Thanks so much.
This is a beautiful statement, Kathy, and it so honestly reflects how some of us may doubt the caliber of our faith and trust in the Lord when we experience authentic human emotions of fear, anxiety, and the like. Many of my close sisters in Christ watched considerable wounding within the church between those who chanted “faith over fear” during the tremendous stress of the global pandemic. I’ll be the first to say that I felt a lot of anxiety during my cancer experience and in the first year of the pandemic, and I felt that my Christian friends who were pushing the platitude of “faith over fear” may have lacked some real empathy. Life is more complex than these simple statements, and I take comfort knowing that our Father knows best what it’s like to walk out our faith and thrive in the daily pressures of a fallen world? As you’ve so beautifully said, He LOVES us, even in all our humanity. Thank you, God. Keeping you in my prayers for discernment and comfort.
Thank you Jenny for sharing your journey. People need to hear it. Platitudes without humanity are wounding and inauthentic. They hurt the Body of Christ. Keep preaching it, sister!