3 Things We Can Do to Obey God, Even When it’s Hard
As a mom, I frequently ask my kids to do things around the house. When they obey, it brings me joy. When they don’t obey, it frustrates me and usually brings some sort of confrontation.
As Christians, God calls us to obey Him. But obedience isn’t always easy. Sometimes, it’s actually hard.
We are like that child who wants to do things in their own time and in their own way. Let’s take some time to explore how we can obey God, even when it’s hard.
My story:
Four years after we got married, my husband and I were in a very hard space in life.
We had a small child with one on the way and he lost his job.
We had no savings because we had spent it all for my husband to get a journalism degree.
We knew something had to change quickly but didn’t know where to start or what to do.
We turned to The Lord for provision and guidance.
We lived in Ottawa Ontario (Eastern Canadian) and my husband couldn’t find any work.
So my husband started looking for work in other areas of the country. First, the search stayed in the province. But as time went on, the search became farther and farther.
As my husband looked for work, we felt The Lord calling us to Edmonton (Alberta, western Canada). My brother-in-law lived there, and we knew that there were more job opportunities there. So we started making plans. We gave our landlord our notice and planned for my husband to drive out west on May 1rst.
As the time came closer, my husband hadn’t found a job yet, and we were wondering if we had heard wrong.
We had been sure of God’s calling, but nothing was working out.
We were getting anxious. Even though we had prayed about our situation before, we came to The Lord one more time. We surrendered our problems to Him and asked for clarity.
After the prayer time, we felt God's peace about whatever may happen next.
I went to bed and my husband continued to apply to jobs.
The next morning, my husband got a call. It was from a company in Edmonton looking for a writer. They had the first interview and asked for a second. They didn’t want to hire him without meeting him and asked if he would be in Edmonton soon.
Thankfully, he was planning on being in Edmonton the next week.
My husband left Ottawa on a Monday. He got to Edmonton on Wednesday, had the interview on Thursday, and started work the week after.
My daughter and I soon followed and joined him in our new town.
We heard God call and didn’t know where He was taking us.
We just knew that God was leading and we knew we could trust His leading.
3 things we can do to obey God, even when it’s hard
Throughout our journey, I have learned a thing or two about obedience. I want to share with you, 3 things you can do to obey God, even when it’s hard.
1. Learn Who God is
When you know who God is, you know He is good, and that He is trustworthy.
The best way to know God is to take time to dive into His word and read what the bible has to say about God.
2 Peter 3:18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.
If you don’t know where to start and need support in this journey, then connect yourself to a community of Christian women who have the desire to learn about God and obey Him.
Once you know who God is, you know that you can trust Him. Once you trust God, obedience comes so much easier.
2. Pray
God calls us to pray for all things. That would include when we don’t know what to do, or we know what to do but don’t want to do it.
Philippians 4:6
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God."
The bible tells us that praying is so much more productive than worrying or planning because you’re bringing it to God instead of yourself.
The bible tells us that whether you are wrestling with sin, temptation or anything else, the answer is still the same.
God wants us to bring all of our thoughts, concerns, anxieties, and so on, to Him through prayer.
James 5:16
"Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working."
Matthew 26:41
"Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."
3. Step Out in Faith
At some point, our faith demands action. If we trust God, then we will step out in faith and trust that He will provide and He will lead.
Galatians 2:20-21 ESV
I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness[a] were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.
These verses are a great reminder that once we are saved, we are dead to our sins and alive to Christ. It’s Him that lives in us and will guide us in our journey.
Having three children, I know that obedience doesn’t come naturally. It is something that is learned through failure, growth and trust. This is the same for us as we walk with God.
Obeying God won’t always come naturally. Thankfully, we are not alone. We have been given the Holy Spirit to guide us and His word to teach us.
May God continue to encourage you as you trust in Him.
In the comments, let me know how you obey God, even when it’s hard.
Anne loves to connect the bible to life today. She has an amazing ability to simplify complex thoughts and make them relatable to any audience. Anne has a passion to see women live for God and to help them serve Him. Anne is the writer and encourager at One Determined Life blog. You can find her on Social Media on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
