Why, Lord?
Far too often I find my mind is a battle field – faith and doubt warring for supremacy. It says in Psalm 32:7:
“For You are my hiding place. You protect me from trouble. You surround me with songs of victory.”
It brings me comfort…until that dart from the enemy finds its mark and I begin the inevitable round of questions.
“If that is true Father, why is there so much suffering? Why do those who love You so dearly and serve You so well have such trouble come into their lives? Why do little children suffer pain and sorrow? Why do evil people prosper? ……”
I fight back with the truth I know – that He loves us; that He is good. Sometimes the questions persist.
I read something today in my little devotional, “Joy and Strength” that answered the question in a way that could only be the gentle voice of the Spirit:
“Just as soon as we turn toward Him with loving confidence, and say, ‘Thy will be done,’ whatever chills or cripples or enslaves our spirits, clogs their powers, or hinders their development, melts away in the sunshine of His sympathy. He does not free us from the pain, but from its power to dull the sensibilities; not from poverty and care, but from their tendency to narrow and harden; not from calumny, but from the maddening poison in its sting, not from disappointment, but from the hopelessness and bitterness of thought which it so often engenders. We attain unto this perfect liberty when we rise superior to untoward circumstances, triumph over the pain and weakness of disease, over unjust criticism, the wreck of earthly hopes, over promptings to envy , every sordid and selfish desire, every unhallowed longing, every doubt of God’s wisdom and love and kindly care, when we rise into an atmosphere of undaunted moral courage, of restful content, of child-like trust, of holy, all-conquering calm.”
William W. Kinsley (b.1837)
In my humanity, I want to think that nothing bad will happen to His children, or if it does, He will miraculously intervene. In truth, He will. It just may not look the way I want it to look.
Where I pray for healing or deliverance from trouble, He may have something else in mind. It doesn’t mean He has withheld His love or turned His back. It means He is doing something I cannot see – something of eternal value. He has promised that He would. He asks me to trust Him.
There is the crux of the matter – trust. I have been dragged kicking and screaming into trust desperately clinging to what I foolishly call control. I have wanted my way because I couldn’t imagine the circumstances we were walking through could possibly be good or right. He has patiently waited for me to look into His face, listen to His heart, and surrender to a love that knows no bounds.
His wisdom is far above mine and His power limitless. He is perfect and holy. His promises are true, but He hasn’t promised to answer all my questions. Instead, He tenderly draws me to Himself and listens. Often He answers; sometimes He doesn’t. Always He is all that He has promised to be. If I will simply trust Him, that is more than enough.
Blessings,
Linda
Thanks for your encouraging post today Linda, and your transparency. I love the mid-19th century language in the devotion too!
I think you exposed our issue…TRUST. I think it is hard to wrap our human mind around the hardships we have in our lives. Some days I am doing really well trusting God, others not so much.
Thank you for your encouragement, Linda.
I think of the song “Trust and Obey”. We may not always have understanding but we can always trust God for His plan to be exactly what we need.