I have been supporting Arsenal F.C for a long time. I don’t even recall how and when it started. I just know that I support the club under the sun and in the rain. When Mikel Arteta took over as the Manager of the club, the fans were told to trust the process, with the hope that it would end the EPL trophy drought, and many of them have been doing that since then. This trust has not stopped them from being the butt of jokes and banter because there is not much to show for their unflinching support. The season usually starts with so much hope, and the Elephant gradually finds its way to the top of the tree and almost predictable the Elephant ends the season on the floor after a great fall. So much promise, so much hope, so much passion from the fans, and so much hard work from the players. Yet the story remains the same season after season.
How blessed we are to have a Father, who is not like that. When He says, “Trust the Process”, we can be sure that we will get the expected result that is aligned with His ultimate purpose for our lives at the end of the process. The Bible is awash with so many examples of God’s faithfulness.
Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven [standing firm and unchangeable]. Your faithfulness continues from generation to generation; You have established the earth, and it stands [securely]. Psalm 119: 89 – 90 [AMP]
The Word of God does not change; His promises never fail. However, when we are going through the process, we could begin to doubt if indeed God’s word is changeless and if His promises apply to us. This happens when we don’t see the link between the process that we are going through and the promised end.
We are not alone in this, even the revered John the Baptist had this belief crises and had to send his disciples to confirm if Jesu was indeed the promised One.
John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about all the things the Messiah was doing. So, he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” Matthew 11: 2 – 3 [NLT]
He was the same person that announced Jesus to the world at the time of His baptism, but he was no longer sure at the time that he asked this question. Seeds of doubt had sprouted in his mind because of life’s experiences. The Israelites also had their own share of doubts when they travelled between Egypt and the Promised Land. Unfortunately, their own spiralled out of control and cost most of them the opportunity of getting into the land flowing with milk and honey.
Since we have these examples and more in the Bible, we have a head start and added advantage. We can take lessons from them for our own journey. We also have the additional support of the Holy Spirit. God does not fail. His faithfulness is always sure. This is true, even when it is difficult to trust the process.
He is God on the mountain, and He does not diminish in abilities when we are in the valley. We can shore up our faith for the days when doubt comes tugging at our hearts by feeding fat on the scriptures, messages and testimonies when we are on the mountain.
We can count on His Word that always comes to pass to see us through as we keep our eyes on the promises when we are passing through the faith-shaking process, knowing fully well that:
God is not like people. He tells no lies. He is not like humans. He doesn’t change his mind. When he says something, he does it. When he makes a promise, he keeps it. Numbers 23:19 [GWT]