How quickly any one of us could move from trusting God’s goodness to doubting it. In one moment we enjoy His care and protection; the next, we begin to lose confidence; begin to doubt. Somewhere along the way, we turned our gaze, looked away briefly. And now… now we find ourselves in unfamiliar and difficult places; living an unprecedented history. What happened? What steps led us here?
In life, certain events are inevitable. Some are obvert, like storms or celebrations, while others develop quietly, like divorce or homelessness. None of these happen all at once. They unfold step by step, as small factors come together and grow over time.
Looking back over, we can see how experiences in general, shape our perspective. Much like a staircase, some steps lead upward, causing us to build our trust and confidence, while others slowly sink down into either doubt or disaster. It’s often the downward path that begins with small, almost unnoticed loss of confidence.
Discontent is due to a lack of confidence, but discontent is quite subtle; it rarely announces itself to becoming a campaign in your life. Instead, it’s cultivated. Advertisers and Influencers are remarkably skilled at breeding discontent, awakening desires we didn’t know we had. Suddenly, “I didn’t know I needed that” becomes a justification for chasing things that quietly distract us from a full and faithful life.
With great speed, we’ve gone from enjoying the simple pleasures of God, providing what is necessary for our everyday well being…. to material accumulation, and “where can I get some extra cash to pay for this storage unit?”
Simplicity gives way to accumulation, and peace gives way to newly found pressure.
Frustration in your life is not the fruit of you’re being discontent; and discontent is not the root of the problem. It’s disobedience. Real life with God is formed in daily surrender, in trust, and in choosing obedience even when discontent tries to take over; discontent will flourish where obedience is neglected.
Misunderstanding this principle could lead us into a realm of dissatisfaction in which we’ll fail to ask “where is there disobedience in my life?” What is it we know to do that you or I have not done? And do we really spend enough time each day focusing or recalling all that God has done and provided in our life, big and small. 
Provision that comes with His presence we recall, came at tremendous cost. It came at the cost of shed blood. A life suffered to give you life. Substitution. Gratefulness brings us back. For you and I to enjoy all the riches of His goodness again.
Now I realize all this is quite elementary about God. Nothing profound. But I do ask, are you in a hard place where things have gotten out of control? Do you call this a difficult season, or is this a cycle? Perhaps, you’re not moving forward because of doubt. Doubt simply states that you’ve lost confidence in the character of another.
The way out of anything, is to go back through. It’s painful to have to revisit the very place where things initially fell apart. Ask the Apostle Peter. It was over a fire (warmed self) he denied Jesus. It was over a fire where Jesus (selflessly) served fish to Peter, calling him back, even after disobedience.
The simple lesson of that passage (John 21) is: real worship starts with repentance (life blood that was shed), and obedience starts with acceptance (life blood that was shed).
Finally, do you doubt God will have you back? He’s calling, but we tend to hold out like an athlete until they can get compensation first. Good luck. Because God who is eternal (with much more time than you or I) loved each one of the persons that wandered in the desert unto their own death, and they didn’t get a new contract extension. He’ll move, if you will.
I too, find myself heading down the steps like this. But neither of us has to stay though. You might feel too far gone. However, it’s just a one step journey back: repentance. The road to return is always topped with that thick layer of grace making the inevitable – profoundly simple, and the joys from before, to be experienced once again.
…this website blog: built mainly for those in transition, can also be about building framework for understanding moral growth, spiritual development, and the relationship between inner conviction and outward conduct.
Amen! Obedience and the fruit that comes from it, leads us to contentment in the promises of God. In hope of his surety, pressing upward has to be our posture. And when going up is not possible because God has called us to WAIT, we must wait and remain content in the Promise of his love. No matter what it looks or feels like, Just as Job did. Doubt comes from fear,and fear is not if God but if we are honest all have it because if our fallen state. The tighter we cleave to God, the more sure we can feel even if its through tears!
God Bless us all that are truly hard pressed but pressing Hard towards our God!