What do you do when God feels distant, uncooperative, or late when you need him the most? On Sunday, September 20, at 9:00 and 11:00 a.m., South Bay Bible Church will begin a new teaching series, Frustrating Faith: Depending on God When He Seems Undependable. Join us in person at 578 Montauk Highway, East Moriches, or online at southbaychurchli.org/livestream and Facebook Live at facebook.com/southbaychurchli/live.
We all face times when it feels like God is far away. Our prayers go unanswered, and our circumstances go from bad to worse. During these times, God may seem distant or even distracted.
“One of the most frustrating and discouraging things about believing in God is when God doesn’t seem to show up when we need him the most. We can feel so neglected during the most trying times in our lives, and that’s when so many lose their faith,” said Martin Hawley, senior pastor. “When this happens, we are so tempted to believe, ‘If God is silent, he must be absent.’ But, what if there’s more to it than we think? What if we’re missing something really important?”
People often tell us to pray more. Preachers tell us to have more faith. But what does the Bible say? In this 3-part series, Pastor Hawley explores the lives of three men from the New Testament, each loved by God, but whose circumstances seemed to tell a different story. Join us for this faith-building series and learn what to do when God seems distant, uncooperative, or late.
1. When It Seems God is not Paying Attention (Mark 6:14-20; Matthew 11:2-11) – September 20: Is God’s silence a sign of his absence? Or does it mean something else? In this message, Pastor recounts the story of a man Jesus said was the greatest who ever lived. Yet, even this man struggled with God’s seeming inattentiveness. How Jesus responds to him in the middle of his doubt contains a secret encouragement for us 2,000 years later.
2. When It Seems God is not Cooperating (2 Corinthians 12:7-10) –September 27: We’ve all seen athletes point to heaven after a touchdown or home run. We’ve heard actors thank God during acceptance speeches. We know God can be celebrated in our moments of success, but what about our moments of weakness? How do we keep our faith when our circumstances are crippling and God seems to be saying, “No!”? In this message, Pastor tells us what God has promised to provide, even when it’s not his cooperation.
3. When It Seems God is Late (John 11:1-45) – October 4: Why didn’t God do something? Sometimes, despite our most passionate prayers, God doesn’t show up the way we want him to, or the way we think he should. The cancer isn’t cured. The company fails anyway. The foreclosure goes through. In this message, Pastor tells us what to look for when it feels like God forgot to show up.
