One of the criticisms of Christianity—inside and outside our community—is that Believers only praise God when life is good. I don’t give any thought or weight to the opinions of non-Believers, but I do want to take some time to address this issue with my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

We can all agree its easy to see Christ moving in our lives when we are healed of that sickness we’d been praying about, or when the furniture we’ve been eyeing at the department store goes on a great sale—even when we’re running late for work and our boss lets it slide. Life is good when the big and the little things seem to smooth out and work for our benefit, right? But how easy is it to see the hand of God working in our favor when we aren’t healed? When the illness gets worse, or our spouse asks for a divorce, or we lose our jobs unexpectantly?

That’s when many of us will throw up our hands and say, where are you God??

It isn’t unreasonable to sometimes wonder where is God—He is our Father and He wants us to be open and honest with Him, even if that means admitting we have fallen weak. Yes, I mean weak; because God never leaves us.

Hebrews 13:5 NIV says, Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.

God does not lie—He is always here, in the good and the bad times. So, when you throw your hands up and say, where are you, God? I feel so alone in this! You are the one who has fallen weak or even stepped away from God. This is not to say that you have allowed sin to enter your life—not at all! Admittedly, it is hard to see the goodness of Christ in our lives when we’ve just lost our jobs. How on earth is that a blessing from God??

Think of it this way; you’ve been praying to God, asking for a new job—so why are you complaining when your current job comes to an end? Don’t let the devil steal even an ounce of your joy! Rejoice, don’t cry or complain! Rejoice and thank God that your new job is coming! If you’ve been praying to God for a spouse, don’t be upset when your current relationship ends—praise God! The Lord is delivering you from one relationship and bringing you into one ordained and orchestrated by Him!

I’m not saying you have no right to ever feel sad or upset with the things you face in life; losing your job is something to worry over, going through a breakup is tough! But praise God, my friend, the Lord always has something better for you. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning, [Psalms 30:5].

I love what Paul says in James 1:2-4 NIV, 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.

Paul tells us to have pure joy when we face trials—and not just any trials, but trials of many kinds. This implies that we will sometimes face troubles of all kinds—not just in our finances or our marriage or our health. Sometimes we will face unpleasant trials, uncomfortable tribulations, and sometimes we will walk into walls we never saw coming but consider it pure joy nonetheless! Why? Because the testing of our faith produces perseverance—some versions of the Bible say patience, and isn’t that something many of us lack?

Take a look at what the Word says will happen if you have much perseverance (patience); you will be mature and complete, not lacking anything! You will not lack a single thing! Not a job, not a home, not a loving family or spouse, you won’t lack peace, you won’t be lacking in health—with perseverance, or patience, you will have everything you need. But in order to reach this point, you must let perseverance finish its work. That means you’ve got to get through these trials.

Whatever you’re facing right now; whether you are struggling with your anger, with an addiction, if you have trouble lying, if you’re stuck in an ungodly relationship—don’t wait, don’t run from God’s deliverance. Flee from sin [II Timothy 2:22]! Go through your trial, test your faith; stretch, pull, and grow it! It may not feel wonderful but know that God is right there with you.

The Word says trouble will come [John 16:33], but please know that not every trial is a test; sometimes we walk into trials we didn’t have to face—remember that cute girl you knew wasn’t saved but you asked for her number anyway? Remember when you were dared to run the red light, even though you could have—and should have—said no? Remember that time your rent was due, but you decided to go shopping instead? These are all trials that you don’t need to go through, but sometimes we mess up and that’s what makes God such an awesome Father. He is waiting to deliver us and if we’ll just be thankful and see Christ in every area of our lives, we’ll recognize that many of these setbacks were actually miraculous setups for our victorious future in Christ Jesus. Amen!

The best part about the trouble we face is that God is always there, even when we don’t see Him or feel Him—He is there. II Corinthians 12:9-10 NIV says, But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

God’s power is most amazing when we are weak! He can’t heal us unless we’re sick, right? He can’t provide for us if we are never in need, right? He can’t bring us a spouse He chose for us if we’re always scrolling through dating websites, right? When you are going through a trial, rejoice! That is when God’s grace is most prevalent in your life! Be determined to see Christ in everything, be unrelenting in your praise, never let the devil steal your joy! Once you learn to recognize God’s grace in every part of your life—the good and the bad—then you will begin to see less and less bad until every part of your life is one magnificent blessing.

If you received this message, be blessed, in Jesus’ name! Subscribe below for more content and check out similar articles such as, Patience and Faith, Persistent Faith, Saying Thank You When Nothing Good Has Happened, and Thank God for Trouble. Take a scroll through the archives for more Christian material.