I told the mountain to jump...and it jumped!

I've been away from blogging for quite some time now. Life hit pretty hard from 2010-2013. My husband and I had our first child and shortly afterwards he lost his job for over a year. This past February the Lord blessed my husband with a new job but a month later I lost my own. It has been quite the process and the desert has been far from easy but we are persevering with the help of our Lord who has never left us or forsaken us. I am currently a very happy stay-at-home mother and frankly hope that the Lord gives me the opportunity to stay home. ;) Because life has slowed down a bit and because I missed blogging so much I have decided to attempt to rededicate myself to commenting on my biblical study journey. 

And what better passage about faith testing than 1 Peter 1:6-7. "So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world."

The bible makes quite a few references to faith. What is faith? Faith is believing without seeing. Trusting in the unknown. Believing there is a light at the end of the tunnel when you're surrounded by darkness. Faith is one of the most difficult traits a Christian is expected to have and practice. How do you believe that you can tell a mountain to move and because you have faith, it HAS to move? How does that make any sense? How am I supposed to believe that my newborn will have formula when my husband has no job or that the bills will be paid on time? How am I supposed to believe and trust the words of 1 Peter that say the trials are just for a little while? Isn't it cruel of God to test us with fire?

I can honestly say that most of those questions crossed through my mind over the past few years. But I didn't let them grow roots in my heart. Instead I allowed myself to believe in the words of the Lord when he told me "You will want for nothing. I sustain you." I chose to believe him. I chose to trust completely in him. And I can honestly say I have experienced the joy of seeing the trial end and my faith returning as pure as gold. I continue to trust and believe in him. It may seem naive to a few but not to me. My faith has allowed me to live in peace and my trust in the Lord and has allowed me to continue walking in his path because I know that he is waiting at the finish line. I will meet him there and he will embrace me and he will say "You did it."

What about you? Have you had your faith tested? Gone through a situation where you couldn't see the end of the everlasting desert? How did God help you?