When God Doesn't Fix It: Lessons You Never Wanted to Learn, Truths You Can't Live Without

by Laura Story

But now more than ever, I needed to have strong faith.

How could I find it in my current circumstances? While meeting God in my brokenness, I’d already discovered that church wasn’t what I grew up thinking it was—a building on Sunday mornings. Was it possible that growing my faith involved something other than the list of to-dos? Isaiah 55:11 says that God’s Word always does the work he sends it to do: “So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” This can be hard for us to understand because we usually think about doing the work ourselves. But God’s light and truth are like twin homing pigeons. When we’re down, he sends them out to lead us back to him. Even when we are in a really dark place, God doesn’t wait for us to muster up enough belief. To grow our faith, he sends his light and truth to hog-tie us and drag us back into his presence. Strong faith doesn’t come

from how hard I work. It’s not what I do. It’s what he does. It is not how strong my faith is. It’s how strong my God is. Think of a mother who is crossing a busy street with a toddler. She takes the child’s hand and, at first, the child holds on. But somewhere in the middle of the intersection, the energetic toddler lets go and tries to wriggle free. At that moment, the child’s safety and security aren’t based on how hard the child can hold on—he’s already let go. They’re based on the strength of the mother’s grip and how hard she hangs on to him. After being in the hospital for so long and then coming home to so many new challenges, it was a relief to know that God’s hold on my life wasn’t contingent on my hold ...

The strength of our faith rests on the person of our faith. I have a big God, so I have a big faith, even if what I bring to the table is faith the size of a mustard seed. And big faith, strong faith, sure faith, and sustaining faith isn’t mustered up. It is a gift from God. A big, strong, sure, and sustaining God. Understanding this redefined how I thought about my faith and how God could increase it. I began to approach Scripture with a completely different view. I didn’t have time for an intensive curriculum study or even a consistent quiet time. I was too busy keeping my husband alive. But even in three short minutes, I could open up his Word and read a psalm a...

MYTH: THE STRENGTH OF MY FAITH IS BASED ON HOW STRONGLY I BELIEVE. TRUTH: THE STRENGTH OF MY FAITH IS BASED ON THE STRENGTH OF MY GOD.

My greatest fear for Martin is that he will get so caught up in his disabilities that he won’t see his abilities.

But there is also evidence that he does abundantly more than we could ever hope for or imagine.

When we submit our prayers to him, trusting his wisdom and timing for the answers, we can see the extravagance of the blessings he bestows on us.

He’s asking us if we’ll still believe and have faith even if our life isn’t comfortable, our days are filled with

Why wouldn’t God bless us abundantly if we’re faithful to give him the credit? His blessings are given to help us do his work.

If God, who wants what is best for me, knows that means learning to depend on him more than I am capable of, why wouldn’t he design circumstances in my life to teach me how to be totally dependent on him for everything?

If that is how God has answered your prayer, he’s not ignoring you. He’s not punishing you. He’s not demanding more from you. He just wants you to know he is sufficient for you and his power is made perfect in your weakness.