Peace Comes as Trust Grows
In today’s guest post, Stephen Robinson shares how he has experienced Advent peace as his trust in God has grown. I know you’ll enjoy Stephen’s testimony …
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.
Proverbs 3:5-6 (ESV)
Have you ever heard the expression, “Be careful what you pray for”? Well, during the past few months, I have thought about that often because at the beginning of 2024, I prayed and asked the Lord for a word for the year He gave me TRUST.
For me, 2024 has been a year of learning how to TRUST. After prayerful consideration, I distinctly remember questioning the word God’s Spirit seemed to have given to guide me through the year.
Did I hear the Lord correctly? I wasn’t sure. I didn’t understand why I needed a word like TRUST. At the time, I had a fantastic job. My health was good. Our family was wonderful. I knew I would walk two of our daughters down the aisle this year as well as watch our youngest daughter graduate from high school. Yes, 2024 has been a year filled with joyous, milestone moments. My wife, Jamara, and I—along with many others—have felt the Lord’s favor in our family.
I would be remiss, though, if I didn’t mention another major moment. Unexpectedly, in March, I was laid off. Talk about a gut punch! Panic set in almost immediately, I didn’t know what to do or think. After the shock wore off, I went to my wife Jamara’s work to tell her in person. I knew at that moment why the Lord had given me the word TRUST.
What I didn’t know then was how I would experience PEACE as my TRUST in God grew. Little did I know that I would learn to say honestly with the psalmist David,
The Lord is my strength and my shield; My heart trusted in Him, and I am helped…
Psalm 28:7 NKJV
I wouldn’t wish this journey on anyone. It’s been a tough way to learn why it’s so important to TRUST in the Lord. Yet, I wouldn’t change it for anything.
Jamara and I discovered PEACE as we learned to TRUST God with our finances. We watched two-and-a-half months’ severance pay stretch out to almost six months. We called this our “fish and loaves” faith-growing experience. We penciled it out, and financially it didn’t make sense, but money was still there.
I found PEACE as I TRUSTED God in worship. I felt His help in a real way, and worship felt much more authentic, more spiritual than ever this year.
PEACE came and TRUST grew as I was overwhelmed with gratitude, which included becoming thankful for the conveniences and comforts of this world that I had taken for granted.
I learned TRUSTING God despite disappointments yields PEACE. I suffered the ups and downs of applying for hundreds of jobs and going through the routine of phone screening calls with recruiters who would get me all hyped up and filled with promises that the hiring manager would love me, only to wind up never hearing from that company again. Yet, through the uncertainty of being unemployed for months on end, I still had a discernible PEACE in my heart. I kept reminding myself of God’s promises and one of my favorite passages in Romans 8:28 that reminds me that,
All things work together for good to those who love God.
I experienced PEACE as I persevered in prayer and learned to TRUST God’s bigger plan. Especially, every Sunday night as Jamara and I took our nightly walk with the dogs, I had optimism and a sense of PEACE that, “this was going to be the week!” Change was coming! I will land a full-time job! I learned that for me, true PEACE only came when I wholly surrendered my plans for God’s plan. I prayed repeatedly, “Not my will, but the Lord’s will be done” to the point that I began to wonder if God was getting annoyed with my prayer. I know that’s never His heart or even in His DNA, but it crossed my mind a time or two.
My TRUST is growing as I submit my plans to the One the angels declared would be called the Prince of PEACE. As I write these words, I am preparing for a final-round interview for a full-time job. Many unknowns await, but I don’t think I will stay up all night losing sleep over it. During almost a year of experiencing what I prayed for, I have learned I can TRUST God with every prayer. Whether or not I receive a job offer, my TRUST is not in a paycheck or a title. My TRUST is in the Lord, and I know PEACE will come as my TRUST in the One who brings PEACE grows.
During this Advent season, I pray your trust will grow as you seek the Prince of Peace!
Stephen Robinson