Thread: Create a thread answering the prompt below. Your thread must be at least
250 words, and must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Friday of Module/Week 8.
In the final chapter of “A Woman and Her God” the authors discuss whether we
perceive God as ultimately trustworthy, and whether or not we live in light of that
trust. What circumstances in your life have shaped and influenced your view of God,
and whether He is (or isn’t) to be trusted? Be sure to incorporate what you have
learned from this week's readings and videos.
Reply post: Read and respond to at least 3 of your classmates' threads. Replies must
involve some discussion, not simply saying you agree or disagree, and must indicate
how your opinion may have changed as you worked through the module/week. Your
post should be 150 words. This assignment must be submitted by 11:59 p.m.(ET) on
Friday, the last day of the course.
The required reading for this specific forum was very thought-provoking.
Never in my life have I heard of the “God-box”, but it seems that I am guilty of this
way of thinking and living. Although, I do not blatantly come out and say that I don’t
trust God, however, I do say it with my actions.
This month has been one of the hardest in a long time. I am used to the
storms, but it seems that in this particular month everything that could go wrong did
go wrong. One of our cars broke down, now money is a bit tight as I had to cut back
on my hours due to being on one car. Trouble brewing between my ex-husband’s side
and myself. My children are acting out due to the complicated nature of my
relationship with their father’s side of the family. My husband and I are experiencing
complications trying to conceive and because I have several mental health disorders
and I choose not to be medicated, my current health-care team will not provide
fertility treatments. I could go on but just know it is a lot. Throughout this month I
noticed that I was putting more faith in myself and others than I was putting in God.
Intellectually, I know that my God is bigger than any problem I face, however,
emotionally, I am not able to trust Him. I guess this is where my “God-box” came into
effect. Moore et al. (2003) states “ We create the size of our God by putting Him in a
box of our own making and limiting His desire to be all that He wants to be in our
lives” (p. 148). It seems that my inability to allow God to take control, due to my lack
in trust, is why I am not at peace during this time of trouble. I know that God is bigger
than my problems, however, I am not allowing Him to be.
It didn’t take long for me to figure out where my lack of trust was stemming
from. Moore et al. (2003) states “Complete trust is a difficult thing” (p. 149). This is
especially true for those that are victimized. Being victimize leaves invisible wounds.
Trust issues is a major one (invisible wound) for me. I struggle with trust issues with
every relationship that I have, to include my relationship with God. One minute I trust
Him fully, then when I think back to the times, that I needed Him most and I felt He
wasn’t there, I would shy away from Him.
When I began to compose this post, I already knew the problem, but had not
yet found the conclusion. However, upon nearing the end of this post it is like I felt
God’s presence telling me to allow Him to have full control over my life. I know that
this is what I should do, but I have to get my heart on the same page. I learned very
early in life that it doesn’t matter what you make up your mind to do, because if your
heart is not in it, then the decision means nothing. So, I will continue to be prayerful
and making a conscious decision, daily, in my mind and heart to give God full control.
Moore, B., Briscoe, J., Wilson, S. D., Hart, K., Hager, D., Wells, T., & LaHaye, B.
(2003). A woman and her God: Life-enriching messages: Extraordinary
women. Arlington, TX: Integrity Publishers.
Greetings Kathryn,
I would like to start off by saying that I think I am familiar with poem that you
referenced in your post. I have that poem hanging on my wall. The title of the poem
is called “Footprints in the Sand”. When I researched the title that you mentioned, the
same poem pulled up, and it had other titles referenced (“Footprints”). I love poetry,
and I can say that I loved this poem from the very first time I laid my eyes on it. It is
a constant reminder that God is always with us, even when we don’t realize it.
Moore et al. (2003) states “He is very small when we want to take charge of
our own affairs” (p. 147). I believe this is very true for most Christians; intentionally
or not. Sometimes we go about our busy day and fail to consult with God because
either we believe our issues are too small for Him to be bothered, we feel that we have
control over their lives, or we have trouble trusting God with their problems. I am
pretty sure that these are not the only reasons, but these are the most common reasons
I have come across and have been guilty of.
To speak on myself, specifically, I have trust issues and this causes relational
issues between myself and God. My trust issues came from a long life of pain and we
(God and I) are currently working on it. I feel that once a Christian sits back and
observes their situation they will realize the issue and move forward with fixing it by
taking it to God. I had to do this on last week, and I must tell you that this is probably
going to be the hardest journey I will ever take.
Your final words really provided the confirmation that I needed. I am in
agreement that we need to seek God in the good times and in the hard times. I feel
we, especially, need to seek Him if we are having trouble “trusting” Him. He is the
only one that can fix our issues and none are too big or too small for our God!
Moore, B., Briscoe, J., Wilson, S. D., Hart, K., Hager, D., Wells, T., & LaHaye, B.
(2003). A woman and her God: Life-enriching messages: Extraordinary
women. Arlington, TX: Integrity Publishers.
Greetings Kristy,
After reading your post, I am glad to see that you are able to trust God,
wholeheartedly. I must say that there are a lot of Christians that say they trust God,
but they really don’t. However, I don’t believe that it is always intentional, as I stated
in my initial post. We are human beings and scriptures tells us that we fall short of the
glory every day. Whether it be not trusting God, worrying (which is a trust issue), not
allowing Him full control of our lives (also a trust issue), etc…, it is evident that we
will fail Him at some time or another.
Moore et al. (2003) states “Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love
relationship is in place between man and God. This does not guarantee an easy life or
one without suffering; but when we seek to glorify God in all that we do, His love will
carry us through any hardship” (p. 3). Although this reference was not found in the
readings for this week, I found it appropriate for my response to you. You mentioned
that your health is not good, and I just want to provide encouragement for you. No
matter what the final verdict is concerning your health, just know that it is in God’s
plan. Your trust in God is very strong and it is my prayer for you that it remains
strong.
I want to end by saying thank you for your response to my post and to clarify
some things. It is very important that I tell you that the traumas I experienced
happened before I was able to accept Jesus Christ as my Savior. I was 8 years old and
was still unsure of the world. From my talks with many individuals, like me, trust is a
major issue and it is very hard to get through to us, however, it is not impossible. You
mentioned, in your response to my post, that I should talk to God more. Moore et al.
(2003) supports your advice on my situation by stating “It is also important to talk to
God frequently. It is hard to trust someone you never talk to” (p. 166). It is ironic
that this is the first thing someone told me when I started on my spiritual journey, and
to be honest all I do is talk to Him. I am medication resistant which means that there
are no drugs that I can take to relieve my mental health symptoms, so I had to take a
year-long course on ways to manage my symptoms. So that coupled with my
constant conversations with God is all that I have. I think these conversations have
kept me out from being a frequent visitor to the mental health ward, and that in itself
is a blessing. I talk to God, all the time, and I talk to medical professionals, peers,
family members, etc…, and I still have trust issues. No amount of conversations is
going to change that. I’m going to take a leap of faith and believe that God will
absolve me of my trust issues in due time.
At any rate, I thank you for the encouragement and the prayers and I will keep
you in my prayers.
Reference:
Moore, B., Briscoe, J., Wilson, S. D., Hart, K., Hager, D., Wells, T., & LaHaye, B.
(2003). A woman and her God: Life-enriching messages: Extraordinary
women. Arlington, TX: Integrity Publishers.
Greetings Madison,
It is ironic that the first two words that I was drawn to in your post was “let
go”. These are the two words that my grandmother uses most frequently. It is either
those two words or the phrase “let go and let God”. You actually used the entire
phrase, but it was written in fragments, however, I love it just the same.
Moore et al. (2003) states “Complete trust is a difficult thing. It requires us to
let go!” (p. 149). From the posts that I have read so far, to include yours, it seems that
you all are able to “let go” and trust God. It is especially evident in your post, as you
consult with God before venturing off in any capacity. I admire and commend you on
this. This week’s readings made it very clear that complete trust is difficult, however,
you have managed to master it. It is my hope to arrive at the place of complete trust
one day, as from what I have seen in others it is a place of pure peace.
I really enjoyed your post for this week and it is my prayer that you will
continue to trust in God in all that you do. Be blessed!
Reference:
Moore, B., Briscoe, J., Wilson, S. D., Hart, K., Hager, D., Wells, T., & LaHaye, B.
(2003). A woman and her God: Life-enriching messages: Extraordinary
women. Arlington, TX: Integrity Publishers.
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