Personal Growth,  Spiritual Growth

How to Trust God – 6 Tips for Greater Trust

Have you ever found yourself in a bad situation with seemingly no way out? I think it’s safe to say that most of us have. Maybe your bad situation was a result of someone else’s choices. Maybe, like today’s guest poster, it was a result of your own choices and you felt undeserving of a way out. Either way, I’m sure you can relate to Gina’s story of shame and regret for one reason or another. Gina turned her situation around by putting her faith in God. Read on to hear her story and find out how to trust God in even the toughest of life’s situations!

Gina’s Second Chance Story

Written by Gina Barton Sewell

Alone and Ashamed

Sitting in the corner of the tiny bedroom, I cried out to God. “How did this happen to me, Lord? How did I get here? “ I felt so defeated, so unworthy and so unloved. I had found myself in a marriage that was filled with nothing but constant fighting. I did not have anybody close to me. Everyone had turned away from me. I was so alone.

Remembering to Pray

Having grown up in the church with a very Christian mom, I remembered where to turn in times of trouble. Even though I didn’t feel at all deserving of His help, I began to pray. At that time, the prayers were not even as much for help to get out as they were to help me learn to deal with what I had done to myself and to my own life. I didn’t think that I deserved to even ask Him for something better.

Woman praying about how to trust God.

I prayed and prayed for the Lord to send someone to help me. To help me to find a place to stay so that I could leave my marriage, for the opportunity to start a life over so that I could be a better mother to my children and help take care of my dad who needed me as much as I needed him at that time. It took me quite a while to realize what I was doing wrong. I was asking God to send me a person in whom I could put my trust. God wanted me to have faith in Him, to put that trust in Him.

{Related: 3 Simple Ways to Trust God More Deeply}

Late one night, my husband had not come home and I was very upset. Not so much that he was not home but that I had let my life turn out this way. Drugs, alcohol, intense fighting. I began reading my Bible because I knew I would get some level of peace and comfort there. I cried out to the Lord and
totally surrendered. I prayed that if this was where I belong for Him to please just help me through it. But, if there was any life out there left for me at all, to please help me find it.

Silhouette of a woman raising her hands in surrender against a sunset sky.

He did just that.

Answered Prayers

The very next morning I woke up, still alone, with all the courage, faith, hope, and peace in the world. I got up and packed a bag.

Then I walked out the door and never looked back.

That was many years ago now. I put my full faith and trust in the Lord to show me how to live; He did, and now my life is so completely different from what it used to be. It is amazing. There have been so many things that have happened in my life and in my family, and I believe faith and trust are what got
me through those things.

I do remember what it was like before I had that. I’ll never forget it, and I’ll never go back.

How Trials Taught Gina to Trust God

Through my ordeal, I learned some things about trusting God that might help you, too!

  1. Keep your focus on Jesus.
  2. Spend time in God’s word every day.
  3. Reflect on the undeserved gifts of love, grace, and mercy He gives us continuously. This helps us…
  4. Love Him and develop a desire to follow Him wholeheartedly.
  5. Allow Him to help you through the trials and tribulations. Don’t fight the discomfort of growth and change; embrace it!
  6. Remember that nothing is impossible when you have faith.

Learning how to trust God is a lifelong journey of growth and discovering both who God is and who you are in Christ. If you’re willing to learn, God is willing to show you that He is trustworthy. Never stop leaning into the Great Teacher, and He will never stop teaching you how to trust Him.

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord,
plans to prosper you and not harm you,
plans to give you a hope and a future.”

Jeremiah 29:11

How do you pump up your trust in God when it’s running low? Comment below and let us know!

Gina Barton Sewell is a writer from Texas. She is married and has four sons, five grandchildren, and three stepchildren. She loves the Lord and loves to write about Him. Her blog, Greatly Emboldened, tells of her journey back to Christ.

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