“Trust in Me”: How God’s Sovereignty Relieves the Burden of Our Anxiety

Posted on Aug 29, 2023 Topic : Inspirational/Devotional, Men's Christian Living, Women's Christian Living
Posted by : Ron Rhodes

Someone said that it is the fate of God to be everlastingly misunderstood. This is often the case when God allows difficult circumstances to come into our lives. We wonder what God is doing.

Here’s something we sometimes forget: God has the unique, sovereign ability to bring good out of evil. This is powerfully illustrated in the life of Joseph, whose own brothers sold him into slavery (Genesis 38–39). This situation was painful for Joseph at the time, but God used it to bring Joseph to Egypt, where He elevated Joseph to a position of great authority (Genesis 41).

During the time of suffering itself, Joseph had no idea what God’s intentions were. He did not know that God was using these dire circumstances—spread out over several years—to bring him to a position of great prominence. This is why it is so important to trust God regardless of the circumstances. God truly did bring about a greater good through the pain that Joseph suffered. Joseph later informed his brothers: “You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good” (Genesis 50:20).

If God could bring good out of evil in Joseph’s life, He can do the same in our lives. God invites us, “Trust in Me—I am working in your life to bring about good things.” How will you respond to this invitation to trust?

The hard thing for us is that God doesn’t sit us down and say, “Okay, listen, I’m going to allow some hard circumstances to happen in your life this next week, but I’m in control and I’m going to use these hard circumstances to bring about a great good. So don’t worry about it. Everything is okay.” Certainly, God did not sit down and explain to Job why he was suffering so terribly.

You and I have the privilege of going behind the scenes of Job’s life as we read the book of Job. But we are not able to “go behind the scenes” and discern the mysterious ways that God works in our lives. That’s why we must trust Him. We are generally unaware of why God engineers our circumstances the way He does. But we can always be sure that He is working for our good.

Consider the apostle Paul, who was imprisoned several times during his ministry (see Acts 16:23-37; Ephesians 3:1; Philippians 1:7; Colossians 4:10; Philemon 9). This must have been painful for Paul at the time. He may have wondered why God allowed it. But we know that Paul wrote Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon while in prison. God did a great deal of good through Paul’s imprisonment. God essentially gave him a “time out” so that he could write some of the books of the New Testament.

Chuck Swindoll once said something that has always stuck with me: “The sovereignty of God relieves me from anxiety. It doesn’t take away my questions. It takes away my anxiety. When I rest in it, I am relieved of the worry.” Indeed, he said, “The sovereignty of God frees me from explanation. I don’t have to have all the answers.”^[1]Joseph didn’t have all the answers. Paul didn’t have all the answers. But both trusted in God.

Please allow me to suggest a nugget of truth that has always helped me when life throws me a punch: When you do not understand why certain things have happened in your life, that is the most important time to anchor yourself on the things that you do understand.

Among the things that we do understand from Scripture are:

God is a living God who seeks to walk with us through every circumstance we encounter (see Daniel 6:19-27).
God loves the unlovable—including you and me (1 John 4:8). In your mind’s eye, try to picture yourself resting in the loving arms of God.
God is everywhere-present. He’s with you every moment, whether you’re consciously aware of it or not (Psalm 139:7-8).
God is just. If someone has treated you unfairly, count on God to make all wrongs right in the end (Genesis 18:25).
God is compassionate and has tender feelings for you. When you are tempted to doubt God’s compassion, think about the Jesus of the gospels, for this will give you an accurate picture of God’s heart for you.

“Trust in Me—I am working in your life to bring about good things.

Why not follow the example of Joseph and Paul and take God at His word? Trust Him!

Pearl of Wisdom: “We know that for those who love God all things work together for good” (Romans 8:28).

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[1] Charles R. Swindoll, The Mystery of God’s Will (Nashville, TN: Word Publishing, 1999), p. 91.