In 1991, at 33 years old, I was diagnosed with stage four ovarian cancer. In a moment, my life was changed, and the new normal seemed like a shocking nightmare to me.
Within ten years of the diagnosis, three additional cancer diagnoses followed: colon, breast, and an inoperable tumor wrapped around my sciatic nerve. As a four-time cancer survivor now, I have learned about trusting God in difficult circumstances.
Jesus clearly warns us in John 16:33, “In this world you will have trouble”(emphasis mine). Yet trouble often surprises us when it arrives on our path, at times, oh so abruptly!
Through the years, as I have watched trouble arrive in others’ lives, I have made two observations. First, many people tend to focus on the trouble at hand, unable to think about much else. Second, people often get stuck in the, “Why?” of it all.
Pondering these observations in light of my cancers, God taught me early on, through His Word, to focus on heavenly things (such as Jesus and God’s Word) instead of the cancer. It helped me to accept my circumstances instead of getting stuck in the downward spiral of “Why.” The Bible tells us in Hebrews 11:6 that “without faith it is impossible to please God.” Not surprisingly then, the enemy of our souls seeks to destroy our faith.
So what can we do? What can help us to trust God when the worst happens?
1. Read and Reflect on God’s Word.
It’s important to not only read the Bible, but to study it and memorize various verses or passages. My Bible looked as if it had been through a war following my cancer journey because I lived in its pages daily!
Besides reading God’s Word, I also pondered and believed the words I read. I signed up for a Bible study, sought to apply God’s truth in my life, listened to God’s Word on the radio and in the pulpit, and memorized helpful passages for my circumstances. God’s Word became my delight. Just as it was for David as we see in Ps. 119:92, “If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.”
2. Pray.
We are told to pray about everything instead of worry. Like the father who brought his demon-possessed son to be healed, we can pray, “Lord, I do believe. Help me overcome my unbelief” (Mark 9:24).
Following my initial cancer diagnosis, fear haunted me and I worried constantly. Eventually I came across Phil. 4:6 and applied it to my life, choosing prayer over worry. Due to harsh chemotherapy treatments, there were times when all I could utter in prayer was one word, “Help!” But help always arrived in answer to my prayer. God bends down to listen to the cries of our heart. He hears and answers prayer.
3. Trust God’s Promises.
God gives us a specific verses to personally claim for our difficulties. Those verses can buoy our faith, helping us to walk by faith, not sight regardless of the size of the storm’s waves.
God gave me Isaiah 40:31 years ago to personally claim, “But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” At the time God gave me this promise, I was 5' 7-1/2” tall and weighed 90 pounds. I looked like I was on the brink of death. This promise daily helped me to walk with strength by faith.
4. Remember.
I chose to remember: What God had already done for me, and that my trials were temporary (no matter how long they lasted on earth), that God loved me as demonstrated on the cross and that, because I was God’s child, the best was yet to come.
Remembering these truths truly strengthened my faith, even when waiting on God’s perfect timing took longer than I imagined.
5. Praise.
When we praise God, we see God for who He is—the One for whom nothing is impossible, the One who is bigger than our circumstances, and the One who is in control.
I was first told to praise God during the most difficult days of my life. At the time, it seemed like the craziest advice I had ever been given! However, I tried it anyway. Soon I began living a life of praise. Praise helped me trust God even when my situation remained unchanged and gave me abundant peace and joy in the midst of the worst.
6. Find Prayer Support.
Other people’s prayers can help us remain steadfast in the faith. We are not meant to go it alone. Many people prayed for me along my journey. One friend told me she was praying that my faith would endure. I am forever grateful that she prayed that prayer. My faith didn’t fail. I now pray this for those I know are hurting.
What joy it must bring to our heavenly Father’s heart when He sees us trust Him through our tears and unanswered questions! He loves us more than we can imagine, and His plans for us are good. He is for us, not against us. He sees us in our struggles, and He cares.
I am forever thankful that I chose to seek God and to trust Him during the most difficult days of my life instead of cursing Him as Satan assumed Job would do when confronted by trials (Job 1). By choosing to trust God, no matter what my circumstances were screaming, I came to know God intimately, to delight and live in His Word, and to follow Him. This is the abundant good God brought from my suffering.
In 1991, I was given a five percent chance of surviving five years. Now my family and I will celebrate twenty-seven years since cancer stormed into our lives!
Jesus warns us that “in the world we will have trouble” (John 16:33a). But He ends this verse with the following words, “But take heart! I have overcome this world” (John 16:33b).
As God’s children, we are headed to an eternity free of tears, pain, and trouble! But in the meantime, God calls us to trust Him. Trust Him, one day at a time, even when we have more questions than answers, and even when we feel as if we are walking in the dark. His mercies are new every morning, and great is His faithfulness, in the good times as well as when the worst happens (Lam. 3:22-23).
Tamara Windahl lives in Minnetonka, Minn., with her husband, Pete. She is an inspirational speaker and published author. Her latest book, Abiding Hope, is full of short, daily reflections and was written to offer encouragement and inspiration to anyone going through hard times.
