It is Monday. The quarterly numbers are bad. A key client just walked. The team is running on fumes. And somewhere underneath the pressure to perform, to close, to prove yourself, a question surfaces that most marketplace leaders won’t say out loud: “Can I trust God when everything looks like this? Like failure?”
The apostle Paul answers that question in Romans 4. He points to Abraham and writes: “No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised” (Romans 4:20-22). Sit with Abraham’s situation for a moment: One hundred years old. Body finished. His wife Sarah’s womb barren for decades. Every biological reality screamed God’s promise of descendants as numerous as the stars was a dead letter. Abraham knew the facts. He was not delusional. But he refused to let them have the final word.
That is not wishful thinking. That is faith, trust, war against unbelief. And it is powerful.
Faith, the kind Paul describes here, is not vague spiritual optimism. It is a reasoned, willful conviction that God can and will do what He said, because of who He is. Abraham’s faith was not primarily a feeling. It was a stubborn daily, frontline decision to trust the One who made the promise, even when the promise looked impossible. Abraham grew strong in faith by giving glory to God in the middle of the wait. Not after the breakthrough. During it. During the “no way this works out” phase.
I watched this play out with a business owner in a men’s group I led in Florida. Third cancer diagnosis. News as bad as it gets. What he did next undid everyone in the room. He worshipped. Unrelenting, unashamed, flat-out worship. Who does that? Hang his hat on the character of God, come what may?
You have your own impossible situations at work. A shrinking margin. A stalled career. The ethical choice that costs you the deal. Perhaps the diagnosis that bleeds into Monday. These are real. They press on you with real weight. Culture says to grind through with self-reliance, or to reach for a platitude that does not touch the actual pain. Both miss the point.
Biblical faith does something different. It looks directly at the contrary evidence and resolves, “Nevertheless, God is able.” It holds the promise without pretending the circumstances are not hard. Keep giving God glory in the tension, and your faith does not stay flat. It grows. That is not a metaphor. It is open to you today.
The Gospel makes this concrete. The God who promised life from death raised Jesus from the grave. If He did that, He can be trusted with your spreadsheets, your strategy, and your setbacks. The same faith counted to Abraham as righteousness is now offered to you in Christ. Not as a prize for believing perfectly (Abraham didn’t), but as a gift to everyone who trusts the One who never breaks a promise.
So, this Monday, give glory to God before the breakthrough arrives. Name the hard circumstances honestly, then name the character of God, too. That posture is open to you right now. In the tension between what you see and what God has said, your faith can grow. Not despite the pressure of the marketplace, but right in the middle of it. Faith can grow even because of your trials.
© 2026. C.C. Simpson is dedicated to fostering a bold and triumphant Christian faith within the global marketplace.
Before becoming President of CBMC International, Chris dedicated 28 years to a distinguished career in the public
sector – as a Commanding Officer in the U.S. Marine Corps, and serving in the U. S. Secret Service, responsible for
protecting seven American presidents and leading elite teams in complex, high-stakes international missions. With
his wife Ana, Chris resides in Boca Raton, Florida.
Reflection/Discussion Questions
- Where are you currently letting visible circumstances set the ceiling on what you believe God can do?
- In what area of your work life has self-reliance quietly replaced trust in God’s provision?
- What does it look like in a practical sense for you to give glory to God in the middle of a difficult professional situation?
- When was the last time you saw God come through in the marketplace in answer to anxious prayers, and are you letting that memory anchor your faith today?
NOTE: If you have a Bible and would like to read more, consider the following passages: Matthew 17:17-21; Galatians 3:6-9; Hebrews 11:1-2,6-10; James 1:5-8;
This Week’s Challenge
Identify one specific pressure point at work this week: a deal, a decision, or a difficult relationship. Write down the character attribute of God that speaks directly to it. Every morning before you open your email, spend two minutes giving Him glory for who He is in that situation.
Then share that attribute with a trusted friend or a member of your CBMC team and invite them to check in with you by Friday. Don’t wait for the breakthrough. Give Him glory before it comes, and watch what happens to your faith.
