Trusting God Through the Good and the Bad

Life has a way of shifting beneath our feet without warning. One moment, everything is bright and the path ahead is clear; the next, the weather of our lives can turn into a gloomy, uncertain moment. Nothing in this life is guaranteed but one thing is for sure, God stays present and constant through it all.

We may take life for granted and try to “time” the good times and the bad, predicting how long it will last, riding out the highs, but all it takes is for one bad footing and everything goes south. We should not only seek God when things get ugly but rather in both good and bad times.

When I think of trusting God through the process, I think of Joseph. His life was a rollercoaster of extremes—from a favored son to a slave, from a prisoner to the second in command in Egypt. His faith and trust in God was exemplary. When he was betrayed and sold off to slavery, he was met with many obstacles; it was not an immediate rise to power. In every step he displayed faith and trust, and coupled with God’s mercy and wisdom, he graced through all of the challenges.  

When Joseph looked back at the betrayal of his brothers and the years of wrongful imprisonment, he did not see it as a series of unfortunate events but rather God’s providence. He was able to trust God and see the good in bad times despite the harm done to him. As such, he was blessed richly. 

Gen 50:20 But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.

When something bad happens, we may be quick to play the victim or wallow in our own misery. We may find fault in others or think that our problem is too big to solve. If we take a step back, give thanks to God and put our trust in Him, it puts things into perspective. It allows us to be grateful for what we have currently and potentially how worse off the situation could have been – this gives us the confidence that with God we are able to navigate even the roughest of seas.

Successful investors often say that time in the market beats timing the market. Likewise, do not time when to remember and trust God but set God as the constant everyday and He will direct your paths through the good and the bad.

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall [a]direct your paths.