Trusting God in Adversity
by Karen Kinnaird
At the onset of the quarantine, I knew I wanted to read Trusting God by Jerry Bridges. The opportunity came up to join a Zoom study of the book with a small group of believers, all of whom I had never met. Coincidence? No.
This best-selling book is, in my opinion, a must read. According to Bridges, “The Scriptures teach us three essential truths about God—truths we must believe if we are to trust Him in adversity. They are as follows: God is completely sovereign, God is infinite in wisdom and God is perfect in love.” Someone has expressed these truths this way: “God in His love always wills what is best for us. In His wisdom He always knows what is best, and in His sovereignty He has the power to bring it about.”
With these truths on the forefront of my mind, and as I am reading Council Road’s daily Bible Reading Plan, God is speaking through certain passages that I would have quickly passed over before. Never did I comprehend the vastness of God’s sovereignty and notice the amount of Scripture referencing God’s sovereignty. Sovereignty can be defined as God ruling and working according to His eternal purpose, even though events seem to contradict His rule.
Sovereignty is better discerned backward than forward. Based on what we’ve read so far this year in the Bible Reading Plan, let’s journey through a small selection:
In the book of Genesis, after years of unfair treatment, Joseph stated, “You (his brothers) intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” God orchestrates acts of people, even evil ones, to accomplish His purpose. God overrules evil and sin to use it for good, and Joseph clung to His absolute sovereign God (50:20 NIV).
As we journeyed through the Exodus in chapter 12 we read, “The Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and for clothing. The Lord had made the Egyptians favorably disposed towards the people, and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered the Egyptians” (12: 35-37 NIV). God favorably disposed the hearts of people to fulfill His plan.
Our hearts went out to Ruth and Naomi as we witnessed the different threads of God-directed circumstances being woven into the tapestry of God’s plan. Each and every providential circumstance was orchestrated to accomplish His purpose.
In Ezra 1, God literally directed the heart of Persian King Cyrus to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem. “The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah” (1:1 NIV). Further, God moved in the hearts of the Jews to respond, “Then the family heads of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and Levites—everyone whose heart God had moved—prepared to go up and build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem” (1:5 NIV).
We read with suspense the book of Esther while witnessing God’s sovereign hand working behind the scenes. Layers of incidences were all intended toward God saving His people.
How can we forget Job’s terrible plight and ultimate conclusion, “I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted (42:2 NIV).
Recognizing God’s control over his life, the psalmist wrote, “But I trust in you, Lord; I say, ‘You are my God.’ My times are in your hands” (31:14-15 NIV). And in all his wisdom, Solomon writes in the Proverbs, “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps” (Proverbs 16:9 NIV).
Not only do we read about God’s sovereignty over people and circumstances, but as we trace through the Bible we also see God’s sovereignty over nations, governments, military and the weather.
As a word of caution, while God is in control, we are still called to live responsible lives and to pray. Living an obedient and prayerful lifestyle is an expression of our trust in Him.
With everything going on in the world, does God even have the kind of time or care about such trivial details as to what book I should be reading? Yes. Bridges writes, “Nothing is so small or trivial as to escape the attention of God’s sovereign control; nothing is so great as to be beyond His power to control it.” God knew that in this season, my family would be thrust into a season of uncertainty concerning the future. I needed this book. I needed to anchor myself in the truths that God is completely sovereign, infinite in wisdom and perfect in love.
Situations and circumstances may appear to us as happenstance, but God has a distinct plan for both His children’s good and His glory. He is the Master Planner in both explicit and subtle ways. Even in the face of adversity, when things don’t make sense or when life is uncertain, we are to look to the Lord through eyes of faith, not sense, and trust Him. God really is trustworthy. Trust His plan. Trust His timing. Trust His provision and unique deliverance.
Author Bio
Karen Kinnaird serves at the Spiritual Formation Team Coordinator for Council Road. She has been a minister’s wife for nearly 35 years and is a certified leadership coach. An award-winning blogger, Karen has a passion for encouraging women searching for hope. She and her husband, Jimmy, have three children, two grandsons and a granddaughter on the way. the