The Great Mystery
The Great Mystery
“Just as you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones form in the womb of a pregnant woman, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.” – Ecclesiastes 11:5 (NET Bible)
What is the greatest mystery you have ever explored?
A good “who done it” story can be captivating and thrilling. As you piece together the clues and slowly start to figure everything out…or maybe just think you are getting it until an unexpected twist changes everything.
Life is full of mysteries, like what’s going on inside a blackhole, who shot JFK, and how Kevin Costner keeps getting work. Some of the mysteries of life we may eventually explain, but one will largely remain a mystery. What are the ways of God?
As we read in Isaiah 55:
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” – Isaiah 55:8-9
God knows more, is wiser, is mightier, is more just, is more loving, and is more righteous than we are. As much as we may try to explain God, we simply can’t comprehend Him.
I’m reminded of my daughter when she was about three years old. She was taking a bath and said the water was too cold. So, I turned on the water, but told her she had to stay on the other end of the tub because it was going to be really hot. She asked why I was using hot water instead of warm water.
So, I explained the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics to her.
If you chuckled at that, you probably had a similar thought as my wife, who rolled her eyes at me and asked why I was explaining thermodynamics to a 3-year-old.
Why is that silly?
Simply put, a 3-year-old doesn’t have the ability to understand thermodynamics. They have enough trouble understanding that hot will hurt, let alone the mechanisms and laws that control why. We are kind of like the 3-year-old when it comes to God. But, wait…
I had a thought when I read our passage from Ecclesiastes, today.
“We’ve come a long way in understanding how wind moves and how babies form.”
We might be tempted to think that we are getting closer to understanding God’s ways. Worse, yet, it seems that for some, the more they understand about God’s creation, the more they dismiss the very God who created it. We must resist that temptation.
We are kind of like the 3-year-old when it comes to God, except it isn’t just a matter of smarts. Even if we were as smart as God sin would corrupt our ability to understand Him. We must remain humble towards God.
So, What Do We Do?
We accept what we know and don’t know about God. Some things He has chosen to reveal and explain to us. Some things He has not. He does this through His Word. So, we accept what God reveals as true and we accept that what He doesn’t reveal, we probably won’t understand. We embrace the mystery.
Heavenly Father,
Your ways are not our ways and Your thoughts are not our thoughts. Even as we grow in our understanding of Your creation, help us to remain humble before You.
Amen.
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
I Want a Car and A Beach House and a…
I Want a Car and A Beach House and a…
“And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.” – 1 John 5:14-15
Have you ever been disappointed by not receiving what you prayed for?
We probably all have. We ask for something and God doesn’t give it to us. The title of today’s devotion talks about things like cars and houses, but this can happen with all kinds of things…
- Jobs
- Getting married
- Having a child
- Kids being more obedient
- Healing from an illness
- The list could go on.
So, what is going on? Maybe we figure that requests like expensive cars or money might be selfish, but some of the things we have prayed for are good things.
The Magic Word
When I was growing up, I remember being told to use the “magic word” when asking for something. That word was, “please.” I recently have been teaching my 3 year old about that word. He’s gotten better about saying, please, but he’s also started to think that it’s a guarantee to get what he wants.
“I want that toy.”
“No, you have plenty of toys. We’re not getting you another toy.”
“Please!”
It’s as though that word should make his will irresistible. We have to explain that while we’re glad he remembered to say, “please,” the answer is still, “No.”
Sometimes we treat prayer like my son treats the word, “please.” I said, “In Jesus Name,” God, You have to do it.
Is God being unfaithful?
When we read passages like this and understand them as telling us that we can ask for anything and God has to do it, we misunderstand the passage and try to make God into a magic genie.
Notice the in the passage the words, “according to His will.” In John 14:13-14, the same thing is intended by saying, “ask in My name.” It’s kind of like God saying,
“If you ask Me for something that I want to give you, I’ll give it to you.”
Nothing Can Stop Him
The message being conveyed is very different from, “I’ll give you whatever you want.” The message is that nothing can prevent God from giving you what He wants to give you. It’s a message of assurance and power. God can and will deliver on anything He intends to do or give.
The Sad Misunderstanding
When we understand these passages (or worse, when they are taught by pastors) as God promising to give us whatever we ask, we set up a sad situation. Inevitably, we will not get everything we ask for. Then one of two things will result:
- We think God is a liar.
- We think we must not “have enough faith”
Either result is bad.
The Comforting Understanding
On the other hand, when we understand that God is saying nothing can stop Him from doing what He wants, that results in comfort, assurance, and peace. Rather than leading to greed or selfishness, this leads to trusting in God and good and perfect will.
Heavenly Father,
You are mighty and sure. Your will is good and perfect. Help me to trust in Your will that I may say along with Jesus, “Not my will but Thine be done,” knowing that Your will is best.
Amen
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
Changing Our Perspective
changing our perspective
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:28
Are you having a good day?
In yesterday’s devotion, we talked about how God has made us His children and will free us completely from the corruption of our sinful world one day. But we don’t have to wait for God to work good in our lives. He’s doing it even now!
He is working through every situation you are in right now for your good. In love, He called you, saved you, and is working in your life for your good.
Sometimes it doesn’t feel like it. We go through some rough days…or weeks…or months. It can seem like God doesn’t like us or has abandoned us.
However, we may just need to change our perspective.
Have you ever worked with a physical therapist? When I’ve worked with physical therapists in the past, there were times I was sure they were only doing physical therapy work because the job of dungeon torturer had already been filled.
In truth, though, they were working for my good. They were pushing me and stretching me and strengthening me so I could have a better life.
When I took my focus off the pain and struggle and considered their real purpose and looked toward the better life I would have, it changed my thoughts about what I was going through at the moment. The stretches and exercises hadn’t changed, but my perspective had.
God is working for your good.
There may be times when things are painful and it’s hard to see the good, but He is working for your good. It can help to take your eyes off the pain and problem and put them on Him. Remember, His purpose and His goodness and think of the better life He is preparing you for, one where you are drawn closer to Him in repentance and faith.
So, peace be with you even in the storm. Yes, it is hard, but God is with you and working through that storm.
Heavenly Father,
You are greater than the storms of my life. Your forgiveness is greater than my sin. Your life is greater than my suffering. You are mighty, faithful, and good. Change my perspective. Help me to focus on You and Your faithfulness rather than my problems.
Amen
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
God’s Plan Works Despite Trouble
God's plan works despite Trouble
“Take your son, your only son—yes, Isaac, whom you love so much—and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.” – Genesis 22:2
God is God and His plans are perfect. However, we are not and God’s plans often work through mankind. So, God’s perfect plans have to work through imperfect people. That doesn’t mess God up, though. His perfection even allows Him to work through sinful mankind perfectly.
So, whether it’s Abraham being told to sacrifice his only heir and son of promise or David having an affair or numerous kinds of Israel following after other Gods. Still God worked and His plan of salvation worked to completion despite our sins.
This is true today as it was in the past. God continues to work in the lives of people for His good and perfect will.
So, even when things seem to be going awry, God is still working His plans. Even when we mess things up with our sin, God is still working His plans. God is neither surprised by our mistakes nor by our sins. God can even work when we seriously mess things up.
Heavenly Father,
You have provided a means of grace, a heavenly salvation. Continue to remind us that your plans work even through our bad choices and sinfulness.
Amen
What is God’s Will?
What is God’s Will?
“Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” – The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:10)
“Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” – Mark 14:36
Jesus trusted the Father’s will was good and right even though it would be hard.
When we pray for God’s will to be done we do so because we realize His will is good and right. It is the best. We seek His will because we see we don’t know enough and sin has corrupted our wisdom. We aren’t saying, “Okay, fine. We’ll do it Your way this time.” We are saying, “Please, Lord, save me from my ways. Let Your will be done instead. I need Your will to be done.”
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
Praying in the Garden
Praying in the Garden
For a long time, I viewed the phrase, “Not my will, but Thine be done” as a surrender to the authority of God. It’s as though I would tell God, “This is what I want. This is what needs to be done, but I guess it’s Your call. (sigh) So, do what You want.” Then I read something in a book that changed my view on this phrase forever.
The person wrote something to the effect of, “‘Not my will, by Thine be done.’ is not so much about giving in to God’s might. It’s about recognizing that God’s will is good and perfect. He loves us. It’s also about recognizing that our will is corrupted by sin. This prayer is a desperate cry to God that His will be done because His will is better than anything we could ever conceive.”
In this new light, the prayer moves away from me being like a child upset that His dad won’t let him do what he wants and moves toward me clinging to my loving Father in the midst of a frightening and overwhelming moment or looking to His wisdom when I am unsure.
Now, I gladly, even desperately sometimes, pray for God’s will to be done over my own in a similar way that when I fly, I prefer a professional pilot fly the plane rather than demanding I be allowed in the cockpit. Something tells me the other passengers on the plane also prefer that.
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt