When Faith is Tested

Trials. Tests. Afflictions. Disappointments. Loss.

They have a way of revealing who we really are and what matters most to us. Our family recently has been going through one such season.

However, about two weeks before we received the news of job termination, one verse kept coming up in my quiet time, at church, and from other friends and fellow believers:

"Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." — Isaiah 41:10

In fact, it came up five to seven different times in the span of one to two weeks. And the crazy part was, none of the people who shared it with us were related or knew each other or our full situation.

When it came up for the last time, I remember telling my mom, “Mom, something big is about to happen. God is preparing me for some situation that would cause me to fear and be discouraged.”

Then, a few days later, we received the unexpected news. My husband’s job was going to be terminated. A month later, my husband hurt his back so severely that he was bedridden for over a week.

We have had every reason to grieve, be afraid, disappointed, angry, and confused.

The Fire of Unexpected Transitions

Seasons of loss, disappointment, trial and testing, disappointments from delayed hopes or dreams, physical injuries, and health struggles—these situations or circumstances can come to us all.

In the face of such sudden loss or unexpected transitions, the anger and sadness, confusion and discouragement can become overwhelming, especially when you are doing your best to serve God faithfully and do His will. They surely test our faith, can dash our hope, and cause our love to dwindle.

So what do we do when the test comes? Where do we turn for comfort, for encouragement, and renewed hope?

I have seen time and time again that truly, just one word from God can bring the comfort we need to heal, the hope we need to move forward, and the faith to step out again. As our family has been going through this most recent trial and test, one verse has kept coming back to my mind:

“In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” — 1 Peter 1:6-7

Did you catch that? It said we will be grieved by various trials. Tested by fire.

But why, Lord? Why the necessity of such trials?

So that the genuineness of our faith may be found. He wants to see how genuine our faith really is. It is easy to trust God and believe in Him when things are going well. It is easy to obey when it doesn’t cost you something… but will we still remain faithful and obey amid pain, grief, loss, and disappointment?

This is when trusting God in trials is really put to the test.

A Real-Life Trial by Fire

Ever heard the phrase “trial by fire”? It reminds me of the account in Daniel Chapter 3 when the king of Babylon gave the order for everyone to bow down and worship the golden image he had made. And if someone did not bow down and worship, they would be thrown into the fiery furnace.

Well, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were faithful worshippers of the one true God, the God of Israel. They knew the second commandment of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20:4-5a which states:

“You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them…”

If they were going to remain faithful to God, they could not bow down and worship this image. Their faithful obedience was being tested. Would they continue to put their hope in God and trust Him to deliver them? Would they choose to love Him and serve Him even to the point of death?

They made their decision and said these powerful words to the king:

“Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” — Daniel 3:16-18

They took their stand. In the midst of a great trial of their faith, they made it clear who they would obey, who they loved most, and where the hope of their salvation rested.

I think the most powerful part of those verses is the phrase, “But if not.”

But if He doesn’t deliver us from this fiery furnace and we do die, we still will not bow down and worship the image. Regardless of the outcome, they were choosing to stand faithful to God, loving Him and hoping in Him to the very end.

Character Revealed and Restored

This is what trials do in our lives. They come to test our faithfulness to God. As my husband, Aaron, so often says: Trials, at first, reveal character before they produce character within us. Disappointments, health struggles, job loss, the loss of a loved one—the list goes on. All these things God will use to test our faith, to reveal to us if we are truly putting our faith in Him, hoping in His Word, and loving Him first above all else.

Our most recent trial has certainly done that. At first, there was shock, there was grief, and questions, confusion, and anger were filling our minds and hearts. We definitely thought, “Why, Lord?” and “What went wrong?”.

But the beautiful thing about these moments in our lives is that if we respond, God is calling us to draw near to Him. He is beckoning us to come to Him and His Word for comfort and renewed hope and direction. He wants to show us His love for us in how He miraculously provides and delivers us. And He will use our testimony through the trial to inspire and bring about godly change in others.

A couple of weeks after the job loss, another Scripture kept coming up whether it was at church, through a book, in my Bible study, or through a friend:

"But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you." — 1 Peter 5:10

What a powerful word of encouragement and hope that spoke directly to what we were feeling and what we needed. After we have suffered a while, God promises to perfect us, establish us, strengthen us, and settle us.

Anyone who has gone through a trial can relate to the unsettling and uncertainty that it brings. But God promises here that He will settle us again, He will establish us, and He will strengthen us.

Hearing this verse being repeated to me over and over again was like taking a deep breath, like a soothing balm to my grieving soul and an anchor of hope to hold onto in the midst of this trial and storm.

The Subtle Deliverance of God

Now back to our story in Daniel Chapter 3: did God deliver those who stood faithful to Him, hoping in His salvation and choosing to love Him to the end?

He certainly did! In fact, we see the Messenger of God Himself in the midst of the fire protecting them and bringing about this miraculous salvation! It says in Daniel 3:27-28:

"And the satraps, administrators, governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together, and they saw these men on whose bodies the fire had no power; the hair of their head was not singed nor were their garments affected, and the smell of fire was not on them. Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying, 'Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent His Angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him...'"

Did you get that? The fire had no power on them. The hair of their head nor their garments had been affected at all. Not even the smell of the fire was on them.

Now, let’s be honest. We don’t always see these types of miraculous salvations in our own lives. Or do we?

So often I am looking for God to work in these big and powerful ways. But sometimes, and most often, His work is more small and subtle, and if I am paying attention, I can see Him working in the midst of the trial to deliver me.

Now it may not be a true physical fire we are being delivered from, but maybe it is fear of the future or putting our faith in riches instead of in Him. Maybe it is misplaced hope in certain things happening or certain dreams or plans that we had that weren’t best for us.

One thing has become very certain to me: that with every trial, every test, He is seeking to grow our faith, trust, and reliance upon Him. He is seeking to make us cling even more to the hope of everlasting life with Him instead of the things of this world. And He is seeking to deepen our knowledge of His love for us and our love for Him and one another.

A Testimony for Others

Lastly, He will use our testimony through the trial to bring about godly change in others. Notice what the king said about the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego:

"Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent His Angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him... Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language which speaks anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be cut in pieces... because there is no other God who can deliver like this.”" — Daniel 3:28-29

Now instead of the image being honored, it was their God who would be honored. Now all of Babylon would know that there is no other God who can save like this except the God of Israel!

Our trials are not just about testing and growing our faith, but they are also meant to grow and inspire faith in others as they watch us remain faithful in our hope in God regardless of our circumstances.

Now we can see why the verse in 1 Peter 1:6-7 says that we can rejoice in trials. Why? Because we know that God is going to use them to grow our faith, renew our hope, and increase our love for Him if we choose to seek Him, draw near to Him, and remain faithful in our obedience in the midst of the trial. This is how our faith will result in praise, honor, and glory to God when Jesus returns.

I don’t know what trial you are personally experiencing, but take heart, and remember these words from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ:

“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” — John 16:33

Because He has overcome, we can rest assured that we too will overcome with Him.