In Your Challenges, Remember.

July 9th, 2024.

There are moments in our lives when trouble comes. From relationship challenges to prodigal children to job loss and the challenges of being a leader… the Bible is clear. Our Christian faith does not guarantee us easy lives or protection from suffering.

A friend of mine summed it up this way for me years ago. "You're either in a storm, you're coming out of one, or there's a storm coming." He may have come up with that or aquired it from someone else. Either way, it's a truth we all live with. There will always be storms.

Reading through the beginning of Psalm 77, we quickly pick up on the fact that the writer is in a storm…

"I cried out to God for help;

I cried out to God to hear me.

When I was in distress, I sought the Lord;

at night I stretched out untiring hands,

and I would not be comforted."

-       Psalm 77:10-12 NIV

Been there. I have felt that way, and likely, so have you. We've all had moments where the pressure gets heavy – where we finally break down and cry out for help. Personally or professionally, possibly even both, we find ourselves in the valley. The only place to look is up, so we seek God's hand.

Sometimes, the response we receive from God is fast and clear. Help comes quickly, and the Lord's response is obvious. Other times, like the psalmist, we wonder if God hears us. We wonder if we're being ignored, if we've been forgotten, or if God is withholding his love from us.

"Has his unfailing love vanished forever?

Has his promise failed for all time?

Has God forgotten to be merciful?

Has he in anger withheld his compassion?"

-       Psalm 77:8-9 NIV

In these moments, when the wondering creeps in and our confidence is shaken, the psalmist provides us with a strategy for resting in Him even when we don't see him. As a leader and a business owner, I'm a guy who loves strategies. Give me a strategy and a plan to follow, and I'm in. This one doesn't disappoint...

One word: Remember.

“Then I thought, "To this I will appeal:

the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand.

"I will remember the deeds of the Lord;

yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.

I will consider all your works

and meditate on all your mighty deeds."

-       Psalm 77:10-12 NIV

Remember. When the challenges are getting heavy and God's responses feel light, think back to those times when He showed up for you. Remember the miracles and blessings that He's already done. Consider how He has worked in your life.

That's a strategy we can lean into.

They say hindsight is 20/20. Remembering is our opportunity to tap into hindsight, looking back on God's hand in our lives and all the times He's carried us through the struggles. It's spending some time acknowledging all the challenges we've faced and how He has consistently shown up – never late, always on time.

When the psalmist calls us to remember, consider, and meditate on His works, it reminds us to control where our thoughts take us. Instead of letting our minds lead us down negative paths, it's a call to refocus on the positive and to set our mind on things above, specifically on a God who loves us and will never forsake us.

The storms will come, and they will go. Consistent in the middle of the storms is the love of a Father who stretches out His hand over our situations and does mighty deeds.

Remember that today, and take the time to remember how He’s proven that in your past.

…

John Gamades, Author of WAR: A Tactical Guide for Christian Men