Keys to Trusting God

As someone who was verbally, emotionally, and sexually abused by her father, Joyce dealt with a lack of trust in many areas of her life. Over the years, through reading and studying the Bible, God began to heal her brokenness. As she began to experience God’s love and faithfulness firsthand, Joyce learned that she could really trust Him—with herself and her future. Here she answers readers’ questions and shares some of the important things she’s learned about trusting God that have made a huge difference in her relationship with Him.

Q: How can I learn to trust God more?

Joyce: Often when we think of trusting God, we think of trusting Him for things we need or want—financial provision, physical healing, the restoration of a relationship, or a promotion at work. But a true relationship of trust in God extends beyond trusting Him for something and includes trusting Him through a situation. We need to learn to not simply look to Him for the results we desire; we need to learn to trust Him through the process of getting them. 

There was a time in my life when I focused intensely on trusting God for things, saying, “I want this, God,”  “I want that, God,” and “I need such-and-such, God.” In the midst of my requests, He began to show me that He needed to teach me how to trust Him while I was going through situations.

God wanted me to learn that He may not always rescue us when we want out of circumstances, but He is always with us as we walk through them. Because He is with us, we can go through difficult times in our lives with stable, positive attitudes, trusting Him completely, even against seemingly impossible odds.

Q: Should I continue to trust God when I can’t feel Him?

Joyce: When we don’t see God doing anything in our life, and we don’t hear Him saying anything, we may feel as if we are stumbling around in the dark, trying to find our way through a maze.  Although these times challenge our faith, they can teach us an important lesson: to trust God even when He is silent.

Just because He is silent doesn’t mean that He isn’t doing anything. The Bible says that God is always working behind the scenes to help us—even when He is silent (Romans 8:28; John 5:17). God always has a proper time for things. When He is ready, He will speak, and until He does, it is our job to keep listening and waiting with expectancy.

Q: With all of the uncertainty in my life, what’s the best way to trust God?

Joyce: If we need to know something, we can always be assured that God will tell us. But if we don’t need to know, or if it’s better for us not to know, then God won’t tell us, and we can, and should, learn to be satisfied with that.

Instead of getting confused and frustrated while trying to reason and question things in life, why not simply trust God to work with us on a “need to know” basis?

Q: Do I continue to trust God when I have unanswered questions?

Joyce: I have learned from personal experience that putting my trust in God means there will be some unanswered questions. That was a hard lesson for me because I naturally want to understand everything—to know what’s going on so I can feel like I’m in control.

It’s just human nature to try and figure things out. But when we trust God, we have to get comfortable with not knowing everything—not knowing how God is going to accomplish what needs to be done or when He will do it.

I know it’s easier said than done, especially when “life” happens—when we can’t quite see how everything’s going to work out and we’re tempted to take matters into our own hands. Instead, we can lean on Him, believing He wants what’s best for us (Jeremiah 29:11).

Q: How can I trust God when everyone who is supposed to love me has hurt me?

Joyce: I think we can agree that we have all, at some point in time, had someone we love hurt us. It may not always be intentional, but unfortunately it still happens. Part of being in relationship requires a willingness to be disappointed and yet find a way to continue building trust, rather than giving up.

God is the only one who will never truly let us down. Honestly, I am sometimes initially disappointed when things don’t turn out the way I had hoped they would. But there is a difference between my being disappointed and God disappointing me. My own expectations are the source of my disappointment, not God, because Scripture teaches that if we put our hope in Him, He never disappoints us (Romans 5:5).

I find that when I don’t trust God, I am filled with doubt, fear, worry, and anxiety, which can often cause problems in my relationships. It is stressful and places a heavy burden on me that I don’t want to carry. But when I trust Him, believing His Word and promises, I have peace and joy in every circumstance.