When Life Shakes You to the Core: Finding Unshakable Faith in Uncertain Times

Life has a way of catching us off guard, doesn't it? One moment you're cruising along, managing work deadlines and weekend plans, and the next moment you're sitting in a doctor's office receiving news that changes everything. Or maybe it's the phone call in the middle of the night, the pink slip on your desk, or simply the slow realization that the future you'd planned isn't going to happen the way you thought.

Chances are you've felt that ground-shifting moment when something you counted on suddenly feels uncertain. Maybe you're there right now. I want you to know that what you're experiencing—that shaken feeling—is completely normal. And more importantly, there's a way through it that doesn't require you to just "tough it out" or pretend everything's fine.

Recently, I've been walking through one of those faith-shaking experiences myself. My father-in-law, has always been my personal hero. He's the kind of man who lights up when he talks about baseball, who's been married to the same woman for decades, and who has spent 37 years faithfully serving his community as a pastor. If you were to pick someone who seems invincible, someone who has life figured out, it would be him.

Then came the diagnosis: primary progressive aphasia, a rare form of dementia that slowly steals away a person's ability to communicate. For someone whose life has been built around words—preaching, teaching, encouraging others—this felt like a particularly cruel twist of fate.

I found myself asking the question that probably feels familiar to you: "Why?" Why would this happen to someone so good? Why now? Why him? And underneath those questions was an even more unsettling one: "If this can happen to him, what might happen to me?"

The truth is, we all face moments that test what we believe about life, about fairness, about whether there's any real meaning to it all. Some of the most common faith-shakers include:
Uncertainty about the future - Not knowing what's coming next, whether it's job security, health, relationships, or even world events.
Failure - Both our own mistakes and the disappointment when others let us down.
Loss and death - Whether it's facing our own mortality or losing someone we love.
Doubt - Those nagging questions about whether what we've believed is actually true.
Illness - The phone call from the doctor or the diagnosis that changes everything.

Take a moment to think: What has shaken your faith recently? What keeps you up at night wondering "what if"?

Here's something that might sound harsh but is actually liberating once you accept it: we shouldn't be surprised when life gets difficult. I don't mean you won't feel shocked when bad news comes—that's completely normal. What I mean is that we can stop being surprised that these kinds of things happen at all.

Jesus himself said, "Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). Notice he didn't say "you might have trials" or "if you're unlucky, you'll face difficulties." He said you will have them. It's part of the human experience.

The ancient book of Job puts it even more bluntly: "People are born for trouble as readily as sparks fly up from a fire" (Job 5:7). And Psalm 90 reminds us that even in our best years, life contains both joy and pain.

This isn't pessimistic—it's realistic. And when my father-in-law received his diagnosis, one of the first things he said was, "I'm not above this happening to me. Why wouldn't this happen to me just like it could happen to anyone else?"

There's something freeing about accepting that we live in a world where things break down, where bodies get sick, where relationships end, where plans fall apart. It doesn't make the pain less real, but it does help us stop wasting energy being shocked that hard things happen.

Reflection question: How might your perspective change if you accepted that difficulty is a normal part of life rather than an exception?

When trouble hits, we instinctively turn somewhere for help. Maybe it's to our bank account, our network of contacts, our own problem-solving abilities, or sometimes to Netflix and a bag of chips. All of these might provide temporary relief, but none of them can address the deeper questions that crisis brings up.

The Bible suggests a different first response: "Come close to God and God will come close to you" (James 4:8).

But you might be thinking, "What's the point? If God exists and is good, why didn't he prevent this problem in the first place?" That's a fair question, and it's okay to wrestle with it. Wrestling with God isn't disrespectful—it's actually a sign that you're taking the relationship seriously.

The key is learning to ask better questions. Instead of getting stuck in the "why" loop (which rarely leads anywhere helpful), try asking "what" questions:

• "What do you want me to learn in this situation?"
• "What are you doing that I might not be able to see right now?"
• "What good might come from this, even if I can't imagine it?"

Reflection question: When you face difficulty, what or who do you typically turn to first? How has that worked out for you?

Let me tell you about the Apostle Paul. He was basically the first international missionary, traveling throughout the Roman Empire starting churches and telling people about Jesus. He was incredibly successful at it—until he ended up in prison, likely for the rest of his life.
If you were looking at Paul's situation, you might ask, "God, why would you allow this effective missionary to be locked up when he could be out there doing good work?" It seems like a waste, right?

But here's what we know now: while Paul was in prison, he wrote letters to encourage the churches he'd started. Those letters became much of what we now call the New Testament—the very words that have been encouraging people for over 2,000 years. God was doing something Paul couldn't see at the time.

When I got stuck asking "why" about my father-in-law's diagnosis, I started making progress only when I began asking "what." I started praying, "God, I don't understand why you're allowing this, but I know that somehow you're going to use this situation for good, even if I can't see how right now."

Reflection question: Think about a difficult situation in your past. Looking back now, can you see any good that came from it that you wouldn't have expected at the time?

One of the worst things we can do when life gets difficult is isolate ourselves. There's a story in the Bible about Moses during a battle. God told him to hold his staff up in the air, and as long as he did, God's people would be winning. But Moses was over 80 years old, and his arms got tired.

So what happened? "Aaron and Hur found a stone for him to sit on. Then they stood on each side of Moses, holding up his hands so his hands held steady until sunset" (Exodus 17:12).

Moses couldn't do it alone, and neither can we. The Bible says, "Share each other's burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ" (Galatians 6:2).

This is one reason why being part of a community—especially a faith community—matters so much during difficult times. When your faith feels weak, you can lean on the faith of others. When you can't see any hope, others can help you remember reasons for hope. When you don't have strength to keep going, others can help carry you.

I've watched my father-in-law do this throughout his diagnosis. Instead of withdrawing, he's allowed his church family to love him and support him. He's been honest about his struggles while also continuing to encourage others with his faith.

Reflection question: Who are the people in your life who could help support you during difficult times? Are you allowing them to do so?

Jesus told a story about two builders. One built his house on sand, and when the storms came, it collapsed. The other built on solid rock, and when the same storms hit, the house stood firm (Matthew 7:24-27).

The difference wasn't the storms—both houses faced the same weather. The difference was the foundation.

Here's the life-changing question: What are you building your life on?

Most of us build on things that seem solid but are actually pretty shaky when tested: our career success, our health, our relationships, our bank account, our own ability to figure things out. All of these are good things, but they're not strong enough to be your foundation because they can all change or be taken away.

Jesus claimed to be the solid rock—the one foundation that won't shift no matter what storms come. But what does it actually mean to build your life on him?

If you've never seriously considered what it means to base your life on Jesus, here's what it involves:
Believe - This means accepting that Jesus Christ actually died on the cross to pay for humanity's wrongs and that he proved he was God by rising from the dead. I know this might sound far-fetched if you're new to this, but there's actually strong historical evidence for these claims if you're willing to investigate.
Accept - This means acknowledging that you've made mistakes and hurt others (we all have), and accepting God's forgiveness for those things. It's admitting that you can't fix everything that's broken in your life on your own.
Switch - This means being willing to change direction—to stop trying to run your life entirely on your own terms and instead ask God what he wants for your life.
Express - This means actually telling God that you want Jesus to be the leader (the Bible uses the word "Lord") of your life.

The Bible says, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9).

This isn't about becoming perfect or having all your questions answered. It's about placing your trust in someone bigger than yourself, someone who has already proven his love for you by dying for you.

Reflection question: What would it look like for you to build your life on this foundation? What would need to change?

Here's what Jesus promises to those who build their lives on him: "Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won't collapse because it is built on bedrock" (Matthew 7:25).

Notice he doesn't promise that storms won't come. He promises that when they do come, you won't be destroyed by them.

This doesn't mean life becomes easy, but it does mean you have a foundation that can't be shaken. You have a relationship with God that can't be taken away. You have hope that extends beyond whatever crisis you're currently facing.

My father-in-law demonstrated this when he responded to his doctor's diagnosis by saying, "I will walk by faith in this diagnosis because of who my faith is in." His circumstances haven't changed, but his foundation has held firm.

His wife, puts it this way: "I don't feel ripped off by this diagnosis." Not because the situation isn't difficult, but because their hope isn't ultimately dependent on his health or their earthly future together.

Maybe you've been trying to handle life's uncertainties on your own, and you're discovering that your own strength isn't enough. Maybe you've built your sense of security on things that now feel shaky. Maybe you're tired of feeling like you're at the mercy of whatever crisis comes next.

You don't have to stay there. There's a foundation available to you that has weathered every storm throughout history. There's a God who understands what you're going through and wants to walk through it with you.

If you've never made the decision to build your life on Jesus, today could be the day. It doesn't require you to have everything figured out or to become perfect overnight. It just requires you to be honest about your need for something more solid than what you've been depending on.

And if you made that decision long ago but have been trying to handle recent difficulties on your own, maybe it's time to remember where your true foundation lies.

If any of this resonates with you, I want to invite you to join us this Sunday at Hope Church. Our Services are at 9:30am and 11:00am You don't need to have everything figured out or believe everything perfectly. Come as you are, with your questions and doubts and struggles.

You'll find a community of people who are learning to build their lives on solid ground, people who understand that life is hard but that we don't have to face it alone. You'll hear more about this God who promises to be our foundation when everything else feels shaky.
Because here's what I've learned through my father-in-law's journey and my own struggles: life will shake you, but it doesn't have to destroy you. When you're built on the right foundation, you can weather any storm.

We'd love to have you join us as we figure out what it means to live with unshakable faith in a shakable world.