Read through Psalm 105 (here @ Bible Gateway), Isaiah 45:7 (here @ Bible Gateway), and Isaiah 46:10 (here @ Bible Gateway). What do you see?
In Psalm 105 (here @ Bible Gateway), I see that the Lord did what He said He would do with Israel’s relationship to Egypt. He controls, He is sovereign.
In Isaiah 45:7 (here @ Bible Gateway) I see – well a lot. A lot with which many of us, me included, may struggle. The Lord causes both well-being and calamity. Whew. But he is the one who also forms light and creates darkness.
Then in Isaiah 46:10 (here @ Bible Gateway), I see that His purpose and “good” pleasure is going to be accomplished.
When I consider the last couple of years, which included 5 deaths in our immediate family, it is hard to reconcile those passages with my experience.
That is the challenge is it not? We tend to evaluate what the Lord does from our perspective. We grade Him based on how what He does makes us feel. We seem to think that the only reason that God exists is to make us happy, fulfill our needs, give us a great life.
We put ourselves in the center of the story. All revolves around us. That does not seem to be what the Bible says about God. This is His creation. We are His people. Yes, He redeemed us from the devastating impact of sin in our lives. But that was His choice, not ours. He did it for His purpose.
There are two things that allowed us to navigate the last couple of years. This is the first. God is sovereign. He is in control. He has perfect reasons, good reasons for what He does.
The next thing we held onto will be in the next post.
In Isaiah 45:7 (here @ Bible Gateway) I see – well a lot. A lot with which many of us, me included, may struggle. The Lord causes both well-being and calamity. Whew. But he is the one who also forms light and creates darkness.
Then in Isaiah 46:10 (here @ Bible Gateway), I see that His purpose and “good” pleasure is going to be accomplished.
When I consider the last couple of years, which included 5 deaths in our immediate family, it is hard to reconcile those passages with my experience.
That is the challenge is it not? We tend to evaluate what the Lord does from our perspective. We grade Him based on how what He does makes us feel. We seem to think that the only reason that God exists is to make us happy, fulfill our needs, give us a great life.
We put ourselves in the center of the story. All revolves around us. That does not seem to be what the Bible says about God. This is His creation. We are His people. Yes, He redeemed us from the devastating impact of sin in our lives. But that was His choice, not ours. He did it for His purpose.
There are two things that allowed us to navigate the last couple of years. This is the first. God is sovereign. He is in control. He has perfect reasons, good reasons for what He does.
The next thing we held onto will be in the next post.
This is not the first time I have thought about this. It's not the first time I've struggled, wept, agonized, wondered, raged against the apparent emptiness of the chasm into which I cast my tears, my questions, my doubts, my dashed hopes, and a hundred other emotions and responses to life in this sin-cursed world.
ReplyDeleteSometimes there is silence, for awhile. But eventually always there is a gentle, hopeful whisper that comes and brings me back to this point.... "I am here; I am in absolute control of every tear you shed; I am at work accomplishing my eternal and cosmic work IN and around you; this will end - in greater things than you can imagine; trust Me. You will be glad, eternally thrilled with the result of your puny moment of minor discomfort...."
This is great encouragement. Until the next time, and the struggle renews. But eventually the hope returns, with deeper surrender, better understanding.
I cannot imagine the gloriousness of His glory, and what it will mean to explore it for all endless eternity. He wins... always.