journey onWord with us

Do you ever feel like life is one confusing event after another? There is so much that happens and we all wonder “why”.  On this side of eternity there are so many un-answered questions. Often there is a sense of feeling disobedient or “unspiritual” if we think or voice honest questions about the tough issues we face. But believe me, God can handle our honesty. Look with me at a few examples that will resonate with all of us.

– I prayed so hard about it, but things still didn’t turn out well.
– Why did such a godly person pass away so young?
– Why do some of the people I care for have so much pain?  It seems unfair.
– Parents walk with God in front of their children, and then their children aren’t that interested in God.
– Does all of this praying we do really matter?

In your silent moments, some of those very thoughts may have passed through your mind. A godly relative of mine said to me once, “faith is great, after the fact”. Even though I gave him a good spiritual lecture, I am not naïve to the fact that most of us may have encountered similar feelings. So how do we balance our confidence in the sovereignty and sufficiency of our Lord with the constant messages of life that attack our faith? We must choose to live by trusting in the absolute truth of God’s Word, and the power of its Author. Agreeing with the Word intellectually may be a given in your life, but battles still rage in the practice of truth.

In his great work, My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers gives insight into the confusion(s) of life. He said, “ You cannot think through spiritual confusion to make things clear; to make things clear, you must obey”. Isn’t it true that in our quest to make sense of this life, we far too often use our own reasoning to make it all fit. Unfortunately for us, even our best reasoning falls short in the simplest of life quandaries.  And has no chance to ever begin making sense of the bigger questions like why some get cancer, and why the wicked strike it rich. Our best choice is to follow the logic of Oswald Chambers. Obeying the truth of Scripture and the prompting of His Spirit will help make things clear. Clarity will come in gaining His perspective, and not by having all of our questions answered.

You have your tough issues, and I have mine. Pull no punches with God; cry out to Him! There is no one more acquainted with your grief. And then accept that He will choose what He wants to reveal to us. He is God! … and we are not.

It is not His design to answer all of our questions on this side of eternity.  But He has given us His Word, and His promise of peace. If you are a Christ follower, don’t worry about what you can’t figure out or fix. Just obey what you know to be true, and your confusion will become clear.

Philippians 4:6-7
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.