Have you ever prayed for something and things didn’t turn out how you wanted? Did you question God’s ability afterwards?

It’s okay to admit when we have our doubts. God’s shoulders are big enough to handle it. He already knows anyway so let’s stop hiding.

I’ve been through situations where I have prayed for deliverance and didn’t see an immediate response. In the middle of the storm it’s pretty hard to hold onto the kind of faith of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had.

Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you refuse to serve my gods or to worship the gold statue I have set up?  I will give you one more chance to bow down and worship the statue I have made when you hear the sound of the musical instruments. But if you refuse, you will be thrown immediately into the blazing furnace. And then what god will be able to rescue you from my power?” Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you.  If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.” Daniel 3:14-18 (NLT)

I know it’s much easier to say “even if” once the storm is past. Yet there is peace that comes when we can say Lord I know you CAN do this, I know you WILL do this, but EVEN IF you don’t, I will still put my trust in You.

Throughout many of the storms I’ve had in my life I can’t say I’ve always run to God first thing. How I wish the first words out of my mouth would have been “even if…” but God is faithful and never left me. [Tweet “I have been refined by the fire and so has my faith.”]

Looking back, I know God had His hand on me throughout all the storms in my life. So now because of that refinement in the middle of the storms I can truly say Lord I know you can, I know you will, but even if you don’t You alone are the one I will worship and praise.

I have been praying for the salvation of a loved one for so many years I can hardly count now. To be honest there are days it’s hard to continue on with it but this is where our faith meets the rubber of the road.

Are we going to continue to put your faith in God? [Tweet “He is always there but if the fire gets too hot are we going to jump ship and abandon our faith?”]

Now I’m not saying it’s bad to question things and I sure don’t want to hide my doubts from God because we all know the enemy loves to make us feel ashamed of our feelings. He hopes we hide from God. Let’s not do that, let’s take them to Him.

When I was struggling with the news that I would not have children because of so much scar tissue it was pretty hard to say, “Even if you don’t I will still praise you God.”

There was a sweet release and a peace that washed over me when I finally said, “Lord I know this is possible through You but Lord even if it doesn’t I will still trust you alone.”

[Tweet “It’s easy to praise God from the mountaintop but not always easy in the valley.”]

We need to know God’s hand is with us in the valley. He never abandons us. We unfortunately forget to reach out and grab God’s hand. Instead we try to do it all on our own.

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego knew full well what they were headed for and they knew it wasn’t possible to get through it on their own. Their only hope was God’s saving grace. Guess what? Our only hope in this life is God’s saving grace as well.

So today, will you make the choice to trust God EVEN IF…?

I’d love to know what your EVEN IF situation is right now. Let me know in the comments and I’d be honored to stand alongside you in prayer.

I’m sharing this post with several other blogger’s at these Faith Linkups. I encourage you to check them out. If this post resonates with you and feel it would help others please feel free to share. Easy to share buttons below. ~Laura~