When things are not working out the way we thought they would, it can be difficult to trust that things will work out. God wants us to trust him through thick and thin. In this article, you’ll discover encouraging Bible verses about trusting the process and the importance of never giving up.
It’s hard to believe, but most people don’t know the Bible phrases that could help them begin to trust the process of life. Often, we focus on finding answers when trust falls apart. But I think it’s more important to understand the Bible verses that show the beauty and power of trusting in God. A good Bible quote can help you stay positive when life seems difficult. It can connect you with a deeper sense of peace and hope. And ultimately, this deeper sense of peace and hope will help you persevere through troubled times.
Bible Verses About Trusting The Process
Sometimes, I wish God was like a vending machine; I put in a prayer and God gives me what I want. We all know it doesn’t work that way.
God has a plan, a path, and a purpose for each of our lives. It all leads us to our destiny. He also has a process to get us ready for that destiny. In this article, we will focus on learning to trust the process. The process to reach our destiny requires tremendous trust in God.
Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the LORD tested Joseph’s character.
Psalm 105:19 NLT
God gave Joseph dreams to show him what his destiny would be. But, Joseph wasn’t ready to live it out just yet. Before he could reach his destiny, God had to shape, mold, and refine Joseph’s character. Just like Joseph, we can have big dreams and a destiny God has planned for us. And, just like Joseph, most of us are not ready for those dreams to be fulfilled, yet.
Trusting the process is a concept that many people struggle with. It can be difficult to let go of control and trust that things will work out as they are supposed to. However, the Bible is full of verses that remind us of the importance of trusting in God’s plan and timing. Here are 12 Bible verses that speak to the idea of trusting the process:
1. Proverbs 3:5-6
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
2. Isaiah 55:8-9
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
3. Psalm 37:5
“Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.”
4. Romans 8:28
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
5. Jeremiah 29:11
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
6. Proverbs 16:9
“The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.”
7. Philippians 4:6-7
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
8. Hebrews 11:1
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”
9. James 1:2-4
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
10. Proverbs 20:24
“A person’s steps are directed by the Lord. How then can anyone understand their own way?”
Trusting the process is not always easy, but these Bible verses remind us that God’s plan is always greater than our own. By putting our faith and trust in Him, we can find peace and assurance in knowing that He is in control.
The power of yet
I’m not there yet, nor have I become perfect; but I am charging on to gain anything and everything the Anointed One, Jesus, has in store for me—and nothing will stand in my way because He has grabbed me and won’t let me go.
Philippians 3:12 Voice
Paul realized that he, like Joseph, was in God’s training process and had not arrived at his ultimate destination, yet. In fact, so many great men and women of the Bible had to trust the process of God getting them ready for their destiny.
Moses did not yet have the humility to lead the entire Israelite nation (Exodus 3:11). Esther didn’t have the courage she needed to save her people, yet (Esther 4:16). And, the disciples of Jesus didn’t have the faith to build God’s church and change the world, yet (Luke 22:32). The faith is in the “yet”.
You and I are no different. I often want to give up on the dreams God has put on my heart, because I can see all of my inadequacies, sins, and failures. Those difficulties just reveal that I have to trust God’s process and let him change me.
The process is different for each of us and for our kids if we are parents. Sometimes the process includes difficulty, disappointment, and heartbreak. Other times, it involves opportunities and successes. All of it is a part of God’s process, and if we trust him, we learn and grow.
That beacon of philosophy and wisdom, Sesame Street, has a great song, The Power of Yet, with Janelle Monae that captures this process. We can all use a little Sesame Street to help us along our journey!
Here are 4 principles that will help us trust the process God has us involved in to reach our dreams and destiny.
Pause and reflect
- What are the areas of my character God has to build inside of me in order for me to be strong enough to fulfill the dreams God has given me?
- How am I responding to the process God has put me in to shape me?
Choose a right view of God
I want to know Him inside and out. I want to experience the power of His resurrection and join in His suffering, shaped by His death, [11] so that I may arrive safely at the resurrection from the dead.
Philippians 3:10-11 Voice
In Paul’s journey toward his destiny, he was not focused on the destination but on knowing and understanding God better. He knew that experiencing God’s power came from knowing him “inside and out.”
The biggest obstacle for me in learning to trust the process that God has me in to grow is that I often have a wrong view of God. This leads to me mistrusting what God is doing and trying to take control of the process myself. What is your view of God?
| View of God | Response to God’s Process |
|---|---|
| Distant, Impersonal Entity | I am on my own so I need to take control of my own life. |
| Evaluator | I am always blowing it so I might as well quit. |
| Punisher | I will always be made to suffer so I am negative about life. |
| Loving Father | God cares and is training me so I am free to make mistakes and grow. |
Pause and reflect
- What are you focused on? Do you want to know God better and better, or are you focused on a different goal?
- What is your view of God and how does it affect your response to God’s process of training you to grow?
Take action
- Which view of God best describes where I am at? Do a Bible study to learn who God really is. A good place to start is understanding all of the names of God in the Bible.
- What is my view of training? Do a Bible study on Hebrews 12 to understand how God loves and trains.
Let go of the past
Brothers and sisters, as I said, I know I have not arrived; but there’s one thing I am doing: I’m leaving my old life behind, putting everything on the line for this mission.
Philippians 3:13 Voice
When I graduated high school and went to college, I moved from Michigan to North Carolina. I remember thinking that I had a big opportunity to throw away all of the mistakes, insecurities, and fears from my past and redefine myself, because I was going to a place where no one knew me.
I soon discovered that a change of scenery did not change who I was internally and that I was the same person in North Carolina that I was in Michigan. In Philippians 3, Paul talks about the opportunity we all have spiritually to really leave our old life behind. In fact, being close to God requires that we learn to let go of our past.
To truly know him meant letting go of everything from my past and throwing all my boasting on the garbage heap.
Philippians 3:8 TPT
When I fail to let go of my past, I end up carrying too many burdens and too much baggage, and it prohibits me from having the faith to change and grow. One of the best things about God is that he frees us from our past so we can start new.
What are the burdens you need to let go of so you can grow?
- Discouragement – This is when loss and disappointment has affected me and my faith is tired. I need to pray so I can specifically identify the discouragements I need to let go of.
- Guilt – This is when my faith is blocked by the shame of sin. I need to pray and talk specifically about what is making me feel guilty so I can leave it behind.
- Indifference – This is when my faith is gone, and I just don’t care anymore. I need time with God so he can re-awaken my heart to care for people.
- Old paradigms – This is when my faith is outdated, and I am trying to recreate the past rather than letting God build a new future. I need to pray visionary prayers and get in my Bible to see what God is trying to build.
Pause and reflect
- What are the specific burdens you need to let go of so you can grow?
- How can you change your time with God so he can give you the faith to start to grow again?
Take action
- Who can you talk to and get help from to identify and let go of these burdens?
Keep looking ahead
I am sprinting toward the only goal that counts: to cross the line, to win the prize, and to hear God’s call to resurrection life found exclusively in Jesus the Anointed.
Philippians 3:14 Voice
Not only do we need to let go of our past, but we need to keep looking ahead. Paul says he is sprinting toward the goal and focusing forward. When I ran track, our coach taught us to keep our eyes looking ahead instead of down, all around, or looking back. It was most important when we were the most tired.
By looking ahead to where we wanted to go instead of at the other runners or the crowd, it would make our bodies move forward toward the finish line. In other words, our bodies would go toward whatever we were looking at.
Similarly, I have found that in life, when I am the most tired is when it is the most important to look ahead. It is tempting to want to look down or look at others, but God wants us to look at him and the destiny he has planned for us (Hebrews 12:2, 12-13 NIV).
Pause and reflect
- What are you looking forward to?
- What future is God training you for?
Develop an attitude to learn
All of us who are mature ought to think the same way about these matters. If you have a different attitude, then God will reveal this to you as well. [16] For now, let’s hold on to what we have been shown and keep in step with these teachings.
Philippians 3:15-16 Voice
I don’t always have the best attitude when I am in the middle of God’s process of training me. Many times I have grown bitter, felt sorry for myself, or just been resistant to the whole thing. The older I get, the more I see the importance of developing an attitude to learn. I have so far to go in becoming who God has destined me to be. It is okay that we are not there yet.
God has both you and me in a process to become everything he wants us to be to fulfill our destiny. The key is always wanting to learn and not becoming fixed or entrenched in who we currently are. Learning to trust the process is all about having a disposition that is eager and happy about learning.
Pause and reflect
- What is your attitude about learning?
- If you are a parent, what disposition toward learning are you teaching your kids by your example?
Next steps
We can all grow and develop inner strength when we focus not on a formula but rather on the experience of God’s love changing us from the inside out.
- Read about people in the Bible who had to learn to trust God’s process to shape them for their destiny (e.g., Joseph, Moses, Esther, Jesus’ disciples).
- Write down how they responded by both trusting and/or resisting God’s process.
- Set up a time with a friend to talk about who God is training you both to be and how you are responding to it.
- Listen to Paint Me a Picture, The More The Mary-er Part 3, to learn more about trusting God’s process.
Trusting God In All Circumstances Bible Verse
You are a deliberate creator. You have created what you have in front of you right now, and you have the power to create something new moving forward. If you’re looking for inspiration for how to reframe your thinking about creating your life intentionally, look no further than the Bible. We’ve rounded up some of our favorite Bible verses about how to trust in the process and step into your power with confidence and abandon.
Psalm 37:4
Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
The Bible tells us to trust God’s plan, even when we don’t see any progress toward it. He is working behind the scenes to accomplish His purposes. Trusting in Him means that we have faith that He knows what’s best for our lives and will help us accomplish it according to His timing—not ours! We can also trust Him with our future because He promises never to leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). So whenever you’re tempted to worry about tomorrow, remember this verse from Psalms 37:3-4: “Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed” (Psalm 37:3).
Trust In The Lord Bible Verses
Proverbs 3:5-6
- Trust in the Lord with all your heart.
- Trust in the Lord with all your soul.
- Trust in the Lord with all your might.
- Trust in the Lord with all your mind.
- Trust in the Lord with all your strength!
Jeremiah 29:11-13
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
“When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider this: God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore get ready for trouble while there is still time (Ecclesiastes 7:14-15).”
There is nothing that happens in our lives that isn’t part of an intricate plan by God—a divine blueprint we cannot comprehend or fully understand until we get here after death where we can truly see all things clearly without any deception or confusion from our human minds. Allowing ourselves to trust in this fact allows us not only peace of mind but also great comfort during difficult times because we know it’s going somewhere good!
God wants us to trust Him with everything including our finances so don’t worry about how much money someone else makes compared with what YOU make because it has nothing to do with how much your worthiness level is worth! It’s impossible for anyone else’s success level affect yours unless YOU allow it too!
Isaiah 40:31
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make straight your paths.
Philippians 4:6-7
Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
This is one of those Bible verses that can give you chills when you read it. It’s so powerful! When we trust God with everything in our lives—even the things we think are bad—we’re putting ourselves into His hands. He’s got this whole thing figured out, so we should stop trying to figure it out ourselves!
Asking others for help is also something that may feel difficult at times because we don’t want them to think less of us or see us as being incompetent. But if someone asks us how they can pray for us or help us out, just say yes! We need other people in our lives who will pray for us and support us along the way so don’t be afraid to ask them for help even if all you really want is someone who will listen without judgment (or at least try their best not judge).
Psalm 46:10
Psalm 46:10: “Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
It’s easy to get overwhelmed with life when you’re trying to accomplish something big. Trust that God is always looking out for you, even when things don’t go your way. This verse reminds us of this truth and encourages us to trust him in every situation we face.
Hebrews 10:23
“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds” (Hebrews 10:23).
It’s an important reminder that God has a plan for you and that each step of your journey might look different than what you expected or hoped for. Trust in the process, with open arms and a full heart, to receive the best possible outcome.
Ecclesiastes 7:8-9
- Trust in the process, with open arms and a full heart, to receive the best possible outcome.
- Obey God!
- Do not fear what man can do to you; respect him, rather than love him.
John 16:33
While it’s easy to look at the Bible and see all of these wonderful promises about God’s faithfulness and how he will never leave us or forsake us, we forget that there was a time before Jesus died on the cross when things looked pretty grim. Jesus himself was preparing his disciples for what would happen after his death. He knew they would be afraid but he also made sure they knew that they could trust him in those times of trouble.
Trust in the process, with open arms and a full heart, to receive the best possible outcome.
- Trust in the process, with open arms and a full heart, to receive the best possible outcome.
- Trust in God’s plan for you—and know that it’s always going to be better than anything you could come up with on your own!
- Trust in God’s timing for everything, again because He has a much better plan than yours (or mine)!
- Trust that God will provide not just enough but more than enough of everything we need: security, provision and protection from harm or distress; as well as our rewards in this life—and beyond! We have nothing to fear except fear itself… which is another way of saying we should trust His grace and love!
Conclusion
It’s hard to trust the process when you’re not sure what the outcome will be. We want to know that the outcome is going to be good, but we don’t always get that assurance. And trusting God can be difficult when we feel like we don’t know what He is doing or why. But we must have faith and trust in Him, regardless of our feelings, because His plan is better than anything we could imagine! He has given us so many promises in His Word that guide us through life’s ups and downs, reminding us “the Lord will fight for [us] while [we] remain still.”