What do you do when you know God is good, but life doesn't make sense?
It's one thing to preach about trusting God through difficult circumstances. It's another to walk through those circumstances yourself.
Within the span of weeks, our church family experienced two heartbreaking losses earlier this year.
The first was a dear man who had faithfully served the Lord for many years. He had been part of the pulpit committee that brought me to Hillcrest Baptist Church and had become very special to me.
He loved the Lord. He loved his family. And he loved his pastor.
After a difficult battle with cancer, I had the privilege of spending more than six hours beside him on his final day.
Then, just days later, another family experienced an unexpected loss.
A mother who had recently begun faithfully attending our services passed away suddenly. Her daughter graduated from high school on Friday. By Monday, she was lethargic and was taken to the hospital. On Tuesday, she was gone.
Two families grieving. A church family hurting. And a pastor trying to encourage others while processing the losses himself.
And ministry doesn't stop when life gets difficult.
There are still sermons to prepare, people to shepherd, and decisions to make. There are the challenges of leading a church and the personal hurts that sometimes accompany ministry.
I knew God was good. I knew He was faithful. I knew He was in control.
But knowing those truths doesn't mean we always understand what He's doing.
I knew God was good. I knew He was faithful. I knew He was in control. But knowing those truths doesn't mean we always understand what He's doing.
During this season, I returned to the book of Habakkuk.
Surrounded by corruption, injustice, and spiritual decline, Habakkuk cried out, "O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear?" (Habakkuk 1:2).
When God answered, His response created more questions.
Habakkuk wanted revival. God announced judgment.
Habakkuk wanted deliverance. God announced difficulty.
God would use Babylon to bring judgment upon Judah. It wasn't the answer Habakkuk expected.
Yet by chapter three, something remarkable happens.
His circumstances haven't changed. Babylon is still coming. But the prophet who began with questions now declares, "Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation" (Habakkuk 3:18).
What changed?
Not his circumstances. His perspective.
Through this passage, the Lord showed me three lessons about trusting Him when life doesn't make sense.
1. Let God's Faithfulness Steady Your Heart
In Habakkuk 3:1–15, the prophet remembers what God has already done.
He recalls God's deliverance, provision, and power throughout Israel's history. The same God who delivered His people from Egypt was still on the throne.
His circumstances hadn't changed, but his attention had shifted.
I'm learning how necessary that is in my own life.
It's amazing how quickly we remember the prayer that hasn't been answered but forget the countless prayers God has answered. We focus on the difficulty ahead and overlook God's faithfulness behind us.
Psalm 77:11 says, "I will remember the works of the LORD: surely I will remember thy wonders of old."
Remembering God's faithfulness must be intentional.
Habakkuk knew Babylon was coming, but he couldn't see everything God would accomplish in the years ahead.
He couldn't see Daniel standing before Nebuchadnezzar or three Hebrew men refusing to bow before an idol. He couldn't see how God would demonstrate His power even in captivity.
Habakkuk could only see one chapter. God was writing the entire story.
I was reminded of that truth through the unexpected passing of the mother in our church.
Her husband and adult children organized an absolutely beautiful memorial service. They spared no expense and thoughtfully considered every detail to honor her life.
But what made that evening remarkable wasn't the beauty of the service. It was how powerfully Jesus Christ was exalted.
Hundreds gathered and lifted their voices in worship. I preached from the passage she had personally selected for her memorial:
"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?" (John 11:25–26).
That evening, twelve people trusted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior!
Think about that. A woman who faithfully let her light shine for Jesus was still pointing people to Him even after her passing.
That doesn't eliminate grief. Her husband still lost his wife. Her children still lost their mother.
But what an incredible reminder that even when we cannot understand what God is allowing, He is still at work.
When I can't understand God's plan, I must remember His character.
God is faithful. God is good. God is in control. And God is present.
Don't allow what you don't know about God's plan to make you forget what you do know about His character.
2. Bring Your Burdens to God
One thing I appreciate about Habakkuk is his honesty.
In Habakkuk 3:16, he declares, "When I heard, my belly trembled; my lips quivered at the voice."
Here was a prophet who had just remembered God's faithfulness, yet he was still trembling at what was coming.
Sometimes we mistakenly believe that trusting God means we shouldn't feel the weight of our circumstances. But faith doesn't eliminate our struggles. It changes where we take them.
I'm learning this personally through ministry.
As a pastor, you're often called upon to encourage others while carrying burdens of your own. You stand beside hospital beds, walk with grieving families, and preach God's promises to hurting people.
When that dear mother passed away, my wife and I were on vacation with our children, more than 1,000 miles from home.
I vividly remember walking through a grocery store with my wife, ministering to this grieving family over the phone. Our hearts were heavy. We wanted nothing more than to be there, to embrace them, pray with them, and help carry the weight of their loss. But we couldn't.
As a pastor, that's a difficult place to be. You want to be present for the people God has entrusted to your care, especially in their darkest moments.
But I'm so thankful for a sweet, godly church family who rallied around them. While we couldn't be there physically, our church family was. They loved, encouraged, and ministered to this hurting family.
What a beautiful reminder that the church is not built around a pastor. We are a body of believers called to bear one another's burdens.
The church is not built around a pastor. We are a body of believers called to bear one another's burdens.
And while I couldn't be everywhere or meet every need, God could.
Psalm 62:8 gives us this invitation: "Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us."
God doesn't simply tell us to trust Him. He invites us to pour out our hearts before Him.
Our questions don't threaten Him. Our tears don't surprise Him.
Think about Jesus standing outside the tomb of Lazarus.
He knew Lazarus would soon walk out of that grave. Yet John 11:35 tells us, "Jesus wept."
Our Savior understands sorrow.
I've discovered there's a difference between knowing God's promises and personally resting in those promises.
Sometimes I don't need another explanation. I need to get alone with the Lord, open His Word, and remember that He is with me.
God doesn't promise we'll understand everything. But He does promise His presence and help.
Faith isn't pretending the burden isn't there. Faith is bringing the burden to God.
Whatever you're carrying today, don't allow it to push you away from the Lord. Let it draw you closer to Him.
3. Choose to Trust God Anyway
Everything in Habakkuk builds toward the prophet's declaration in chapter three.
He has asked his questions, expressed his fears, and remembered God's faithfulness. Now he arrives at a decision.
"Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD" (Habakkuk 3:17–18).
Don't miss those two words.
Although.
Yet.
Habakkuk wasn't denying reality. Everything that normally provided security could disappear.
Yet he declared, "I will rejoice in the LORD."
Not because his circumstances improved, but because his confidence was anchored in God.
I'm learning that trusting God is a decision we make before our emotions catch up.
When I think about that kind of faith, my mind returns to those final hours beside the dear man from our church.
At one point, I played the song, "Good Good Father” for him.
I'll never forget what happened next.
As the music played, this man, whose body had been weakened by cancer, began lifting himself from his bed. He looked toward the ceiling, responding with every ounce of strength he had left.
It was as though everything within him was agreeing with the truth of that song.
God was good.
Even now.
Even here.
Even as his earthly life was drawing to a close.
What a testimony!
His body was failing, and his family was preparing to say goodbye. But his confidence in God's goodness remained.
He couldn't wait to see Jesus.
God's goodness isn't determined by my circumstances.
I love the response of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Daniel 3. Facing the fiery furnace, they declared their confidence that God could deliver them.
But then they added three powerful words:
"But if not" (Daniel 3:18).
They knew God could deliver them. They simply didn't know whether He would.
Their obedience wasn't dependent upon the outcome.
Habakkuk said, "Yet I will rejoice."
The three Hebrew men said, "But if not."
And that dear man, with what little strength remained, was affirming the same truth: God doesn't have to change my circumstances for me to trust Him.
That means trusting Him when prayers are answered differently than we hoped, when someone we love is taken from us, or when life doesn't unfold according to our expectations.
Habakkuk concludes, "The LORD God is my strength" (Habakkuk 3:19).
His strength wasn't found in understanding God's plan. His strength was found in the Lord Himself.
And that's where ours must be found.
God Is Still Writing the Story
Before that dear man passed away, we had ordered a special Bible to honor him. Unfortunately, it arrived too late. His sweet wife graciously allowed me to keep it, and today, I preach from that Bible every service.
Every time I open it, I'm reminded of a man whose faith became sight and a mother whose testimony continued pointing people to Jesus even after her passing.
Neither family would have chosen the circumstances they faced. And I certainly wouldn't pretend to understand everything God was doing.
But God's faithfulness is not limited by our understanding of His plan.
Maybe you're carrying a burden you never expected, facing a disappointment you can't explain, or waiting for an answer that hasn't come.
Don't let what you cannot understand keep you from trusting the God you know.
Remember His faithfulness. Bring Him your burdens. Choose to trust Him anyway.
And keep following Jesus.
Keep serving. Keep loving people. Keep sharing the Gospel. Keep taking the next step of faith, even when you cannot see where the road leads.
Your circumstances are not the end of the story, and God is not finished working.
