A Predictable God In An
Unpredictable World
“Oh, the depth of the riches both of
the wisdom and knowledge of God! How
unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!” Romans 11:33
Life is unpredictable. It doesn’t take rocket science to figure that
out. At the same time, our walk with
Christ has an unpredictable aspect as well.
But what we
can predict is that God is working in our lives and on all fronts, even when
things seem most challenging or we find things most cloudy. You
can count on it. God’s sovereignty
simply means that God reigns and is in control even though it may seem that
life is out of control. God’s plan cannot be stopped. He reigns in
realms beyond our comprehension to bring about a plan that will not cease until
the final day, for the world and for you.
Famed writer William Cowper would
discover this in a most unusual way.
During a particularly discouraging season in his
life, he came to a place that he felt was impossible. Heavy, persistent clouds choked out all sunlight
and hope. Rather than turning to the
Lord, he tried to end his life several times.
He tried to take
his life by taking poison (he failed). Then he tried to fall on a sharp knife…and the
blade broke off. He tried to hang himself, but was found unconscious. All these
methods failed. He then tried to hire a
horse drawn coach that would take him to the Thames River…intending
to hurl himself over the bridge. It was
a particularly foggy night. Again, he was strangely restrained as
the driver could not find the river. He
continued to drive in circles. When he
stopped, he found himself right in front of Cowper’s house. Cowper sensed that God was wanting to tell
him something. He sat down in his home
and wrote these words:
God moves in mysterious ways
His wonders to perform
He plants His footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storms
Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never failing skill
He treasures up His best designs
And works His sovereign will
The Bible clearly reveals that
faithfulness to God does not necessarily dictate a patterned end, as God’s plans
play out differently in all of our lives.
Even in the
lives of the most faithful of the Scriptures. Think about it. Abel
followed God’s leading…and he died. Enoch
followed God’s leading…and he didn’t die (as God swung that
chaiort down and helped Him ride). While Noah
followed God’s leading…and everyone else died!! God doesn’t guarantee
that our road will be smooth…but He is always loving and faithful in the midst
of it.
In a world where people are looking
for guarantees, God offers a promised hope that supersedes all others. He will be faithful no matter the
circumstances. Paul
writes, “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!” Romans 11:33 As one song said, “When you can’t
trace His hand, trust His heart.” As the
Master and Commander, He’ll never steer you wrong.
Terry Risser
Reflections:
1)
Can
you recall a time when you questioned whether God really cared for you?
2)
What
allowed you to stabilize during that season?
consider reading the Word today:
Copyright
2014- Terry Risser
No comments:
Post a Comment