pain

Have you ever been convinced that your way made more sense than God’s?

Maybe you knew what Scripture said.

You knew the right response.

You even knew what obedience would look like.

But another way seemed easier, faster, safer, or simply more reasonable.

So you chose it.

And then things got harder.

Philippians 1:6 gives us one of Scripture’s great promises:

God will complete the work He has begun in us.

He is committed to transforming His children into the likeness of Christ.

But here’s the question:

How often do we make that process more painful because we keep resisting the very things God is using to change us?

Sometimes we want God to remove the trial when His plan is to take us through it.

Sometimes we want relief when He is producing endurance.

Sometimes we want another route because His way simply doesn’t look right to us.

And sometimes, like Nemo and Dorie trying to avoid the gap, our attempt to find an easier way leads straight into the jellyfish.

So how can we tell when we are trusting God—and when we are merely trying to escape what He is using for our good?