Proverbs 3:5-6  Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.  There will be times on our lives when confusion sets in.  It’s easy to navigate the mountain tops, but the valleys in life at times are deep and dark.  That’s when our faith is being tested.   Will we trust God when we absolutely cannot see what He is doing?  Will we trust Him and allow Him to guide our steps through the dark times in life?  Joseph continued to trust the Lord even though life did not make sense.   His coat of many colors is now dipped in blood.  He is looking up from the bottom of a pit.  He is falsely accused and in prison.  In the Bible we read the entire story of Joseph’s life and rejoice.  He experienced these trials one day at a time and remained faithful,  even when life made absolutely no sense!  David continued to trust God when being hunted by a jealous Saul.  But Lord, you said David was a man after your own heart.  This is true!  God is teaching us that bad things happen to good people, even God’s people!  What about Job?  He was a man that walked uprightly and stayed away from evil… YET TROUBLE CAME!  There is a funeral for ten kids, the farm is gone, his health is gone, his wife is counseling him to curse God and die.  His response… You speak as a foolish woman!
Job knew it was the Lord that gives and it was the Lord who takes away.  This understanding and trust caused him to say… Blessed be the name of the Lord.  It’s easy to acknowledge God’s goodness on the mountain,  it takes genuine faith to do so in the valley.
No wonder Peter writes in         1 Peter 1:7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
Always remember… the trials are to develop us, not destroy us.  Trust the Lord.  Acknowledge Him, and He will direct our path, even when we cannot see.  Amen.  Pastor