Renew Your Mind: How to Trust God in Hard Times

Our air conditioner broke this week. It was the hottest week of the year, and a heat advisory was in place. Plus, it happened on the weekend, which presents its own set of challenges.

Is it hard for you to trust the Lord? Do you waver between faith and doubt, depending on the situation? In an age that offers solutions for every situation or problem imaginable—money problems, wrinkles, body aches and pains—it’s almost easier to expand our credit line than to trust the Lord.

Think of it: when a problem arises, what is your first response? Google a solution—or pray to the ultimate Problem Solver, the One who has promised to care for all your needs? In a world of quick and easy, the tendency is to Google first. Pray later.

If your air conditioner breaks down, you may need a repairman, but if our lives are truly in God’s hands, a prayer first can make the repair more sure. You may need to seek out a doctor for a medical condition, but a prayer first can offer guidance and maybe even the miraculous healing you were hoping for!

The Israelites forgot the miracles!

The Israelites had a great memory lapse after God powerfully rescued them from Egypt. They saw the ten plagues poured out on the Egyptians. They walked out of Egypt with the plunder of their enemies. They stood on the shores of the impossible Red Sea, and God made a way. They saw the sea split before their very eyes!

And yet, the Bible tells us that when their food supplies were depleted, they quickly forgot the amazing things God had done for them. They grumbled and complained and threatened to return to the land of their captivity.

“The warriors of Ephraim, though armed with bows, turned back on the day of battle… they forgot what he had done—the great wonders he had shown them” (Psalm 78:9, 11 NLT).

When they grew hungry in the desert, the Bible tells us that the Israelites tested God in their hearts. They spoke against Him, saying, “God can’t give us food in the desert…”

The Bible gives us a reason for their grumbling: “…they did not believe God or trust him to care for them” (Psalm 78:19, 22).

Trust and believe.

Faced with a challenging situation, the Israelites didn’t believe that God could help them. They didn’t trust that God cared.

Why do we waver in our faith? Why do we lack trust in the One who split the Red Sea, who brought water from the rock? Or, more closely to home, provided you with a job or a family or strength and health?

You may be facing challenges today. Perhaps you’re fighting cancer or wrestling with a problem teen. Maybe your air conditioner broke down, and you really need a repairman!

God is still the same.

The solution to our problems has not changed from the days of the Red Sea crossing. God has not changed. He is the same, “yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). The same God who split the sea is the same God who cares for you and me.

Unfortunately, in a digital world where we are bombarded by messages, ads, texts, and emails—we can easily forget the things of God. We can quickly lose sight of the truth of who God is and His promises to care for us.

Like the Israelites, we forget what God has done and that we can trust Him. Instead of praying, we turn to the world’s answers to our problems.

Renew your mind.

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2 NIV).

How can we remember God’s truth in a world that competes for our attention? It begins by allowing His word to guide us instead of letting the world dictate how we respond to life.

Have you forgotten the goodness of the Lord? Has life become such a long, hard journey that God’s promise of provision is a memory long-forgotten?

Renewing your mind is the secret to having a solid faith in God. It’s the secret to trusting Him in hard times rather than relying on the world’s ways.

Spend time in God’s Word.

Renewing your mind begins with spending time in God’s word. It’s a choice you can make, a decision to remind yourself of God’s character and His care for you.

Instead of scrolling your Instagram feed, open a Bible app. Fill your mind with God’s truth, His screenshots of miraculous intervention and divine provision.

Renew your mind with Bible stories of Daniel in the lion’s den, the widow whose flour bin never ran empty, or Lazarus coming forth from the grave. Remember the goodness of God. Don’t allow yourself to forget!

As you make choices to spend time in God’s Word, your mind will be transformed. Your first response to life will change as your faith in God grows.

Trusting God will become your mode of operation, your first reaction to a hard situation. Instead of googling the answer to your problem, you’ll find yourself breathing a prayer first.

Renew your mind to God’s truth. Remember the goodness of the Lord. You can trust God!

“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you” (1 Peter 5:7 NLT).

Also, in case you’re wondering, the air conditioner is running again! Someday, I’ll tell you the story of God’s miraculous provision.