10 Keys to Trusting God in Difficult Times

Everyone goes through difficult times. Some people, in fact, seem to go from one challenging thing to another. It could be another miscarriage, loss of a job, loss of a loved one, new health diagnosis, or any number of other trials. We all have them. So, how do you trust God when life is hard? I’d like to challenge you to keep trusting God in your difficult time.

Personally, I have struggled to trust God when His plans don’t line up with MY plans. It just doesn’t seem like miscarriage and loss can possibly be what is best. I have my ideas of how things would best line up. While I don’t have all the “whys” of my life challenges, I pray the following keys will help remind us of what the Bible says about trusting God in difficult times. These are truths to hold fast to.

Trusting God in Difficult Times

Below are ten keys to consider as you wrestle through whether you can hold onto God in difficult circumstances. How do we trust God when it hurts? Here is what you need to remember:

1. God loves you in difficult times

This may seem so basic, but in hard times we forget it…or don’t feel it. The Bible is full of verses talking about God’s love for us. You may even think of John 3:16 (ESV), “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” It’s awesome to know that He loves us! That will never change, even in the challenges.

2. God never leaves us even in our trials

You may wonder, how do we find God in difficult times? We don’t need to “find” God. God is right there in every moment of our trial. He is with us.

Jesus said in Matthew 28:20 that He would always be with us. I’m reminded of the song “I Will Praise You in This Storm” by Casting Crowns. I love the lines:

“No matter where I am
And every tear I’ve cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side”

He holds our tears. He knows what it’s like to suffer. He’s right there with you in your difficulty.

3. Jesus has experienced difficulty too

As just mentioned, suffering and difficulty are not new to Jesus. He came to earth as a human baby, and then He lived life…and not in luxury either. Jesus grew up working with His earthly father. He lived His years of ministry rejected by many, no home, and then ultimately He was tortured and condemned. He hadn’t even done anything. If that wasn’t enough, He took on every sin of every person throughout all of time…while God the Father turned His back on Him. He KNOWS what it’s like to go through suffering and difficulty. He knows how to help you through it.

4. God is sovereign

God is sovereign. What exactly does that mean? It means that He is over all. He has the ultimate authority and control. I Chronicles 29:11-12 says, “Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all.” I find it very comforting to know that God is in control of all things, even when we don’t understand. Because of this, we can trust God in difficult times.

5. Praise God in difficult times

Psalm 145 is one, giant praise to God. I encourage you to read it. It starts out with “I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever. Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable” (verses1-3).

Wow! The chapter goes on to praise God for His mighty acts, awesome deeds, abundant goodness, His graciousness and mercy, righteousness and power, faithfulness, and more! What an amazing God we have!

6. We’re commanded to trust God

There are many Bible verses about trusting God in difficult times. The Psalms are full of these verses, but there are other locations as well. I especially love Psalm 62:8 which says, “Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us.” Isaiah 26:4 says, “Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.”

7. We have examples to follow

We are not alone in our trials. The Bible is full of examples of those who went through difficult times, but they were able to trust God even when bad things happened. Job is someone in the Old Testament whom God allowed Satan to test. Satan said that Job only trusted God because God had blessed him so much. God allowed Satan to put Job through trials. His children all died. His possessions were raided and stolen away. He had terrible and painful sores covering his body. His wife even told him to curse God and die! However, in Job 13:15 Job says, “Though he slay me, I will hope in him;” Some translations use the word “trust” instead of hope.

David is another great example. He went through years of running for his life because King Saul was jealous of him. When he became king, he had many enemies and nations against him. He also lost a baby as a result of his sins of adultery and planning the death of the husband. I encourage you to read Psalm 9, Psalm 37:3-5, and Psalm 56:3-4 for starters. These passages proclaim David’s trust in the Lord.

As moms, unless we prioritize our relationship with God, it can easily fall by the wayside. Learn more about growing closer to God. As we grow closer to Him, we become a better wife and mother as well.

8. We don’t have to understand our trials

We’ve been talking about Who God is and why we can trust Him, but I feel like I should remind you of an important point. You do not need to understand WHY you are going through a difficult time. There’s nothing wrong with asking God questions, even David asked why when pouring his heart out to God in many of the Psalms. However, you may not get an answer to why you’re going through what you are.

There are a couple of Bible passages that are helpful when we don’t understand. We can trust God completely. Proverbs 3:5-7 says “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil”(emphasis mine). I won’t quote it., but please check out James 1:2-6. This passage reminds us to count it as joy when we go through difficult times, how we can grow through them, and a reminder to ask God for wisdom. Trust that God knows why, even if we do not.

9. Focus on eternity

While we live in this world, it’s so easy to get caught up in the worries, the trials, and the pains of it. They are certainly very real, but when we focus on God and the eternal kingdom, our focus shifts. We tend to focus less on ourselves and more on Him. Romans 8:18 reminds us that “the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us,” and then verse 28 reminds us that it’s for our good. I found a great quote about trusting God in the storms of life. “We are safer with God in any storm than we would be anywhere else without Him.” What a great reminder to trust God even when it hurts.

10. Give it to God in prayer

This last key is a reminder to be praying about your trial. God wants us to bring it ALL to Him. Lay out the hurt, anger, and frustration. Then, turn your focus off yourself and firmly put your trust in God completely. Philippians 4:6-7 is the perfect reminder of this: “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Let the peace of Christ fill you as you lay it all on Him. You can trust God even in difficult times. Yes, trusting God is hard, but we can trust God through trials.

Difficult Times Bible Verses

Before I end, I’d love to share a great collection of Bible verses to refer to when you’re going through difficult times. The Word of God is powerful as you navigate even the most challenging times. Just remember that God is our ever-present help in the day of trouble.

Job 1:20-22

 "Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. 21 And he said, 'Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.' 22 In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong."   Job 1:20-22 (ESV)

Job went through one of the most difficult times you can imagine. He lost all his children and possessions in a single hour, but he continues to rest on God’s character in his difficult season. You may be facing some tough times, but know that God’s faithfulness is steadfast in the midst of them.

1 Peter 5:7

“casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”  1 Peter 5:7

God’s Word reminds us here of the good news we have because of Jesus. We can trust God in difficult times because we can lay all our burdens and worries on Him. No matter what difficult trials you are going through, God’s peace can surround you.

Romans 5:3-5

“ Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, ⁴ and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, ⁵ and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”   Romans 5:3-5

One of the good things about times of trials is that even in the darkest moments, God is producing character in us. I know this is hard to hear in the midst of deep anguish (trust me, I’ve been there), but God really can and does grow you in those difficult situations in a way that He couldn’t if things were going fine. He can also use the dark times to draw you into a deeper relationship with Himself.

Isaiah 43:1-2

“But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. ² When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”   Isaiah 42:1-2

This passage is a great reminder of God’s promises in hard times. In fact, this has been one of my favorite Bible verses for trials. Something to note is that you WILL go through times of trouble, but God promises to be with you. 

Prayer for Trusting God

As you trust God in your difficult time, be sure to lay it all before Him in prayer. I’ve included a sample prayer to get you started. However, be sure to personalize and add to this to make it yours. God wants to hear from you.

Pray with me:

“Heavenly Father, I am going through more than I can bear alone. I need Your help as I navigate this difficult season. I realize that You are in control of all things, but that I can cast every burden on You. Thank You that You are with me every step of the way. Help me to lean on You. Amen.”

What challenges are you dealing with or have you dealt with? What verse brings you comfort and strength? Please leave a comment below.

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