It's an interesting thing trying to make sense of that which is difficult to understand. It can come in a myriad of forms from the jobs we lose, the people we love who die too early or our most heartfelt dreams being deferred. It leaves me with a yearning for life to be simple. If I could just make my life more simple, rather than dealing with all of these complications then surely these unplanned events won't happen. If I could just organize things a little more and have everything in its place then life will always continue on the track I want. It's even tougher to realize that no matter how organized, with it, put together and simple I try to keep things, that it is not chaos but God who reigns supreme.
It takes practically nothing to believe the Bible to be true when everything is going well, after all its a common thought that God is simply a god who blesses. To have faith, always believing God makes the most perfect of decisions for my life in order to cultivate me more like Himself, it almost hurts it's so difficult! In Jeremiah, God promises us that He has plans to prosper and not to harm us. It's a beautiful thing to know that God sees the beginning, middle and end of my life when He says that. He knows what direction to steer me in so that no matter what the circumstances, the best possible outcome can become...possible.
3 comments:
Well put, my friend. You might already know this old Puritan prayer but it is a great comfort to me.
The Valley of Vision
Lord, high and holy, meek and lowly, Thou hast brought me to the valley of vision, where I live in the depths but see Thee in the heights; hemmed in by mountains of sin I behold Thy glory.
Let me learn by paradox that the way down is the way up, that to be low is to be high, that the broken heart is the healed heart, that the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit, that the repenting soul is the victorious soul, that to have nothing is to possess all, that to bear the cross is to wear the crown, that to give is to receive, that the valley is the place of vision.
Lord, in the daytime stars can be seen from deepest wells, and the deeper the wells the brighter Thy stars shine; let me find Thy light in my darkness, Thy life in my death, Thy joy in my sorrow, Thy grace in my sin, Thy riches in my poverty, Thy glory in my valley.
Thank you for such a wonderful reminder! A wise woman once told me that God is not limited by our sense of justice. Which means that we can't know the why of things. And awful things do happen to believers. Ps. 138:7 says, "Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me:...thy right hand shall save me." It never says that we will avoid trouble or escape trouble. It says that as we walk through the trouble, God will sustain us. The promise is that He will never leave us or forsake us. He knows the why of things. He knows our future. He knows our days. Faith comes in learning to leave all of that to Him. A hard thing to learn and accept to be sure.
I don't know what your pain is, Cindy, but I'll be praying for you. I think once in awhile of that statement, "Christians are like tea (or in your case coffee!); our real strength comes when we are in hot water." Of course, our only strength is God working through us. Love you, dear! C
Post a Comment