Future Understanding
Day 198
One answer God give Christians to the question why is the assurance that one day you will be able to see things from His perspective.
"He is going to wipe away those tears by giving you knowledge," states Dr. Erwin Lutzer. "Finally, you shall look at everything from His viewpoint. Finally, you shall rejoice in the justice of God. Finally, you shall see the mercy and the loving kindness of God set against His holiness and His greatness. And when you see that, you will be content."
God is just and good, and His plan is wholly good.
"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away" (Revelation 21:4).
God, forgive my impatience; I would rather see Your perspective now. Grant me the wisdom and the patience to wait on You and to trust in Your perfect plan. Amen.
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Remember the Larger Picture - Day 197
Remember the Larger Picture
Day 197
Sometimes when you ask why, He answers by reminding you of the eternal picture. Learn to live your life in light of eternity. Live each day from the perspective of one whose life lasts forever.
Dr. Joseph Stowell says, "I can't underscore enough how important it is to prepare for grief and sorrow ahead of time. One of the ways to do that is to get a grip on eternity, on the world to come. Learn to live here in the light of there so that you are seeing all of your daily affairs and daily routines in light of the world to come. You need to see all of your interactions and reactions and value systems in light of the value systems of the world to come. Then when grief or sudden loss or wrenching sorrow and deep disappointment shatter your world, you are already schooled in all the realities that give you strength in that moment."
There is much more to this life than just doing your best day by day until you die. The big picture is that a glorious eternity is in store for those who know the saving grace of Jesus Christ.
"Surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off" (Proverbs 23:18 NASB).
"And this is what he promised us -- even eternal life" (1 John 2:25).
Eternal Savior, thank you that You have given me abundant life through a relationship with You. Every time I get bogged down with life on this earth, remind me of the reality of a glorious, eternal future in heaven. Amen.
Day 197
Sometimes when you ask why, He answers by reminding you of the eternal picture. Learn to live your life in light of eternity. Live each day from the perspective of one whose life lasts forever.
Dr. Joseph Stowell says, "I can't underscore enough how important it is to prepare for grief and sorrow ahead of time. One of the ways to do that is to get a grip on eternity, on the world to come. Learn to live here in the light of there so that you are seeing all of your daily affairs and daily routines in light of the world to come. You need to see all of your interactions and reactions and value systems in light of the value systems of the world to come. Then when grief or sudden loss or wrenching sorrow and deep disappointment shatter your world, you are already schooled in all the realities that give you strength in that moment."
There is much more to this life than just doing your best day by day until you die. The big picture is that a glorious eternity is in store for those who know the saving grace of Jesus Christ.
"Surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off" (Proverbs 23:18 NASB).
"And this is what he promised us -- even eternal life" (1 John 2:25).
Eternal Savior, thank you that You have given me abundant life through a relationship with You. Every time I get bogged down with life on this earth, remind me of the reality of a glorious, eternal future in heaven. Amen.
Moving Forward in Faith - Day 196
Moving Forward in Faith
Day 196
In the Psalms you read of men crying out to God with endless questions.
"I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me. When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; at night I stretched out untiring hands and my soul refused to be comforted. I remembered you, O God, and I groaned; I mused, and my spirit grew faint. You kept my eyes from closing; I was too troubled to speak....
"Will the Lord reject forever? Will he never show his favor again? Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has his promise failed for all time? Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has he in anger withheld his compassion?" (Psalm 77:1-4, 7-9).
These questions move from cries of despair to cries of praise to God for His faithfulness. The psalmists knew God's faithfulness. They knew that God would not only hear their plea for help, but that He would also be faithful to answer them. They were open and willing to learn from their suffering and to move forward with His help.
"Then I thought, 'To this I appeal: the years of the right hand of the Most High.' I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds. Your ways, O God, are holy. What god is so great as our God? You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples" (Psalm 77: 10-14).
Dr. Norman Peart encourages you to come to God with your questions and your heart cries and to move forward from that point, discovering what God would have you do for Him. Pray these words of Dr. Peart's:
"Lord, I don't understand. I'm asking You and being very honest with You. Please answer according to Your will, but also, can You show me how I am to deal with this? What would You have me to learn? How would You have me to operate from this point on?" Amen.
Day 196
In the Psalms you read of men crying out to God with endless questions.
"I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me. When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; at night I stretched out untiring hands and my soul refused to be comforted. I remembered you, O God, and I groaned; I mused, and my spirit grew faint. You kept my eyes from closing; I was too troubled to speak....
"Will the Lord reject forever? Will he never show his favor again? Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has his promise failed for all time? Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has he in anger withheld his compassion?" (Psalm 77:1-4, 7-9).
These questions move from cries of despair to cries of praise to God for His faithfulness. The psalmists knew God's faithfulness. They knew that God would not only hear their plea for help, but that He would also be faithful to answer them. They were open and willing to learn from their suffering and to move forward with His help.
"Then I thought, 'To this I appeal: the years of the right hand of the Most High.' I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds. Your ways, O God, are holy. What god is so great as our God? You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples" (Psalm 77: 10-14).
Dr. Norman Peart encourages you to come to God with your questions and your heart cries and to move forward from that point, discovering what God would have you do for Him. Pray these words of Dr. Peart's:
"Lord, I don't understand. I'm asking You and being very honest with You. Please answer according to Your will, but also, can You show me how I am to deal with this? What would You have me to learn? How would You have me to operate from this point on?" Amen.
Understanding God's Ways - Day 195
Understanding God's Ways
Day 195
"Understanding the ways of God with my little finite mind would be like a little corpuscle in my big toe trying to figure what I'm thinking in my mind," said Dr. Bill Bright. "I can trust Him; I don't have to understand."
Why do humans feel the need to understand and to be in control of everything that happens in their lives? This reaction may be human nature, but that does not make it right.
At the beginning of time, man was created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). But man was tempted by Satan to sin and failed the test. Since that time humans have continued to be tempted and to fall. This is our sin nature. All people are born sinners; we are born to want to take control and have the upper hand in our lives. But we are doomed to failure.
This is why Christ came as the God/man to earth. He came to live, die, and rise again as payment for the sins of all people for all time. Only a sovereign God could possibly do such a thing and be successful! If you believe this about Christ and surrender your life to Him, you will receive the benefits of His work of salvation. You do not need to fully understand Him, just believe in Him and trust Him in all things.
"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this; While we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8).
"Christ died for our sins .. he was buried .. he was raised on the third day .. He appeared to more than five hundred [witnesses]" (1 Corinthians 15: 3-6).
"I will put my trust in him" (Hebrews 2:13).
God, You are good, and I trust You in all things. Amen.
Day 195
"Understanding the ways of God with my little finite mind would be like a little corpuscle in my big toe trying to figure what I'm thinking in my mind," said Dr. Bill Bright. "I can trust Him; I don't have to understand."
Why do humans feel the need to understand and to be in control of everything that happens in their lives? This reaction may be human nature, but that does not make it right.
At the beginning of time, man was created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). But man was tempted by Satan to sin and failed the test. Since that time humans have continued to be tempted and to fall. This is our sin nature. All people are born sinners; we are born to want to take control and have the upper hand in our lives. But we are doomed to failure.
This is why Christ came as the God/man to earth. He came to live, die, and rise again as payment for the sins of all people for all time. Only a sovereign God could possibly do such a thing and be successful! If you believe this about Christ and surrender your life to Him, you will receive the benefits of His work of salvation. You do not need to fully understand Him, just believe in Him and trust Him in all things.
"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this; While we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8).
"Christ died for our sins .. he was buried .. he was raised on the third day .. He appeared to more than five hundred [witnesses]" (1 Corinthians 15: 3-6).
"I will put my trust in him" (Hebrews 2:13).
God, You are good, and I trust You in all things. Amen.
Move Beyond the "Why" - Day 194
Move Beyond the "Why"
Day 194
At some point in time, if you are to continue toward healing, you must let go of the questions. Your questions may be answered later or they may not, but it is in the process of moving toward healing that you are most likely to get the answers you want.
Margi, who lost her husband, says, "I eventually came to a point in my life where I just said to the Lord, 'I'm going to stop asking You why, and I will being asking You how. How can I use this in my life so that I will glorify You? I want to be able to use this to witness to others and encourage them through whatever it is You are trying to teach me.'"
Change your whys to hows, and seek to grow toward healing by helping other people.
"Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing ... Love in peace with each other ... warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else. Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil.
May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it." (1 Thessalonians 5:11, 13-24).
God, it seems so hard, too hard. Help me to understand that I cannot do anything without Your enabling. You only expect me to love You and learn about You, and Your Spirit will do the rest within me and through me. Amen.
Day 194
At some point in time, if you are to continue toward healing, you must let go of the questions. Your questions may be answered later or they may not, but it is in the process of moving toward healing that you are most likely to get the answers you want.
Margi, who lost her husband, says, "I eventually came to a point in my life where I just said to the Lord, 'I'm going to stop asking You why, and I will being asking You how. How can I use this in my life so that I will glorify You? I want to be able to use this to witness to others and encourage them through whatever it is You are trying to teach me.'"
Change your whys to hows, and seek to grow toward healing by helping other people.
"Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing ... Love in peace with each other ... warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else. Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil.
May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it." (1 Thessalonians 5:11, 13-24).
God, it seems so hard, too hard. Help me to understand that I cannot do anything without Your enabling. You only expect me to love You and learn about You, and Your Spirit will do the rest within me and through me. Amen.
Walk by Faith, Trusting God - Day 193
Walk by Faith, Trusting God
Day 193
"For we walk by faith, not by sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7 NASB).
You are called to walk by faith, especially when there are unanswered questions in your heart. You are to trust God, even when you do not have the explanations you feel you need.
Dr. Joseph Stowell says: "If you look at your problem and then look at God, you always end up throwing stones at God for the problem. If you look at God first and look at your problems through Him, through His sovereignty -- that He is in control of everything, that He has permitted this in your life for a reason, that He is a just God, that He will settle the score for you -- you will see that He is an all-powerful God who can turn this situation to that which is good and right.
"So the way to avoid the vulnerability of these nagging questions that distance you from God and make you liable for Satan's attack in the midst of your despair is to really focus on what you know to be true about God and to live in the exclamation point of that truth, not in the question marks of what you don't know about your problem."
Faithful God, I must look at You first. Teach me about Your goodness and sovereignty. Teach me to see the big picture and not just the pebbles of my unanswered questions. Lord, I'm willing to try. Amen.
Day 193
"For we walk by faith, not by sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7 NASB).
You are called to walk by faith, especially when there are unanswered questions in your heart. You are to trust God, even when you do not have the explanations you feel you need.
Dr. Joseph Stowell says: "If you look at your problem and then look at God, you always end up throwing stones at God for the problem. If you look at God first and look at your problems through Him, through His sovereignty -- that He is in control of everything, that He has permitted this in your life for a reason, that He is a just God, that He will settle the score for you -- you will see that He is an all-powerful God who can turn this situation to that which is good and right.
"So the way to avoid the vulnerability of these nagging questions that distance you from God and make you liable for Satan's attack in the midst of your despair is to really focus on what you know to be true about God and to live in the exclamation point of that truth, not in the question marks of what you don't know about your problem."
Faithful God, I must look at You first. Teach me about Your goodness and sovereignty. Teach me to see the big picture and not just the pebbles of my unanswered questions. Lord, I'm willing to try. Amen.
Limited Answers - Day 192
Limited Answers
Day 192
Here is the challenge: Do not use your suffering as a time to discover if you believe in God, but focus instead on discovering what you believe about Him. In times of suffering, God does not change, but what you believe about Him, what you understand about Him, may.
You will likely have questions to which you will never receive answers. It is human nature to want all the pieces to fit, to want to make sense of things. But there are times when that will not happen.
"I was real angry because I couldn't get answers," says Dora of her daughter's death. "I now realize that there really is no logical reason why my daughter suffered. It is what it is, and to say that she suffered and died for my betterment or for our growth does not make sense. So I've come to realize that I'll never get an answer to that question."
As a human living on this side of death, you will not receive answers that truly satisfy you. The only satisfaction will come when you accept Jesus as Lord of your life and live each day seeking to walk in His spirit.
"Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known" (1 Corinthians 13:12).
God, instead of focusing on the questions, I want to start focusing on the Answer -- You. Help me to better understand Your attributes and Your plan for my life. Amen.
Day 192
Here is the challenge: Do not use your suffering as a time to discover if you believe in God, but focus instead on discovering what you believe about Him. In times of suffering, God does not change, but what you believe about Him, what you understand about Him, may.
You will likely have questions to which you will never receive answers. It is human nature to want all the pieces to fit, to want to make sense of things. But there are times when that will not happen.
"I was real angry because I couldn't get answers," says Dora of her daughter's death. "I now realize that there really is no logical reason why my daughter suffered. It is what it is, and to say that she suffered and died for my betterment or for our growth does not make sense. So I've come to realize that I'll never get an answer to that question."
As a human living on this side of death, you will not receive answers that truly satisfy you. The only satisfaction will come when you accept Jesus as Lord of your life and live each day seeking to walk in His spirit.
"Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known" (1 Corinthians 13:12).
God, instead of focusing on the questions, I want to start focusing on the Answer -- You. Help me to better understand Your attributes and Your plan for my life. Amen.
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