where is God when life gets hard

 In this life, we are all going to have times that life gets hard. Unfortunately, we live in a fallen, broken world where bad things happen. We must realize that we are subject to this world of sin because we live here in this physical world. There are consequences of this life rather by our own doing or by no fault of our own. We go through loss, pain, hurt, and times when things don't turn out the way we had planned or hoped. We face trials and temptations. It is so easy to sit down, give up, and wallow in the misery and sorrow. These times can overwhelm us, defeat us and destroy our faith if we give in to the emotions and struggle. We can easily become angry and bitter at God. We can blame him and easily say, "Where are you, God?" as it seems he is far away. 

 These times are not times that God has abandoned us. Not by any means. He has promised to never leave us or forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5) He does not abandon us when hard times come. Rather, he is there to carry us and encourage us. He is there at all times. He does not it back and watch us struggle to see what would happen. He rather provides what we need and often prepares the situation for our good. 

Hard times can produce increase in strength. When we continue to place our faith in God through the hard, impossible moments, our faith will grow and strengthen. Strength will come as faith is put to the test. Paul encouraged Timothy to endure hardness. 

Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.  Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 2 Timothy 2:1-3 

This increase and endurance becomes a testimony to teach others of how God can bring us through the hard times. Others will see you endure and be encouraged that they too can endure. Strength will increase in your faith. 

Hard times increase faith. In Luke 17, Jesus explained to the disciples that offences come and they needed to take heed to themselves to forgive those that sin against them. The disciples response was in Luke 17:5 when they said Lord, increase our faith.  They understood that only faith could help them respond as Christ was instructing. Faith should be the response to hurt and struggle. 

Faith grows when tested. Temptations come and in 1 Corinthians 10:13, "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."  This tells us that God has already prepared a way for us to say no to temptation. He has equipped us but we need to take action in this circumstance whether it be to call on him in prayer, reach out to a fellow believer for support, or just get out of the situation that is tempting us. We must guard against temptation and be aware enough to not purposely put ourselves in situations that temptation becomes too great. 

Hard times should draw us closer to Christ. Often, in hard times, the human response to push God away and allow fear to overwhelm.  God wants us to get closer to him. He is a place of refuge and shelter for the storms. James 4:8 tells us to draw closer to God and he will draw closer to us. Psalms 9:9 says he is a refuge for the oppressed in times of trouble and Psalms 46:1 says he is our refuge and strength and a very present help in time of trouble. We can run to him and find strength and help. He will be our shelter and our rock. He will wrap his loving arms around us and hold us as we go through the trial. He is described as covering us with his wings like a hen does her chicks (Psalms 91:4) We can rely on God through the hard times. 

God is love. He does not abandon us in hard times. There are so many verses that give us hope. There are many examples in the Bible and in our church families that speak of God's faithfulness through the fire. God brings us through. Whatever trial may come, God is there. Those dark moments and hard times reveal God's love. We must turn to God in the struggle, not run from him. How can we do this? Read the word. pray, and listen. His word is full of life and hope. Find hope in his word. Pray. Talk to God about the hard times. He is present and ready to listen. He cares about what we care about. He tells us to cast our cares on him and he will sustain us. (1 Peter 5:7, Psalms 55:22).  He will listen. Every prayer is precious to him. Then, listen to what God has to say.  So many times, God is speaking to our hearts and we may be so caught up in the emotions of the situation, we may miss what he is saying. He speaks comfort and peace if we listen. He may provide direction in how to proceed. He may speak and encourage us to wait as he works it for our good. We need to listen to hear his voice. So many times, when I have taken time to listen, I have heard his voice say exactly what I needed for that moment. He has spoken love, peace, comfort, and instructed me at times when I needed him. He has proven over and over his love for me. 

Be encouraged that when hard times come, God is already prepared for the battle and the struggle. He has equipped us to endure hardness, and he is the strength we need. We can rely on his faithfulness. We will grow and become a walking testimony of who God is in the trial. He is the strong tower, the strength we need, and the One who has worked it all for our good. He is the Lord of triumph and victory. He is there when life gets hard.