God of Mystery

Twenty-six

God of Mystery

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. ~Isaiah 55:8

I grew up on Nancy Drew and Agatha Christie mysteries. Mysteries entice us to try to figure out who committed the crime before the detective knows. While that’s fun, seldom do we want our lives to be mysteries. We want answers. Now.

When my son died, I wanted to know why. I will always wonder why he didn’t get to live. I doubted the effectiveness of prayer for a long time after his last breath, because not only had he prayed for his healing, but so had I, his father, his grandparents, and countless people around the globe. There are other things I also don’t understand about why things in life happen the way they do.

God doesn’t have to tell us why he allows what He does. He’s God. He never promised that he would explain all things to us. He wants us to trust that He holds the answers, just as He holds our lives. I wish that God would fill me in; but then, when I stand under the multitude of stars, I realize just how small I am. Of course, He doesn’t have to share his ideas with me. Who am I? Even so, I often bellow out at Him, expecting Him to tell me what he’s doing. Then, I’ll conclude, that even on a good day, my tiny mind probably couldn’t handle His thoughts anyway.

You might be like I was. When Daniel died, I had to go over all the details leading up to his passing. Metaphorically, I was like a stomper of grapes; over and over my feet crushed them out of their skins into liquid. I left no grape unsmashed. I wondered why things ended the way they did with Daniel’s life and wrestled with many issues. Did I get the answers as to why Daniel died? I banged on Heaven’s door, so to speak, begging for God to show me why my four-year-old had to die. Did I get the answers as to why Daniel died? Eventually, I placed my questions in a box, sealed it, and stored the box in the attic of my mind. It was unnecessary for me to continue asking. Yet, since I am a wrestler by nature, I needed to ask in order for me to heal. Now there is no need to open the box and take out the mysteries and look them over. Time has passed and I have moved beyond those struggles.

I ask God to wipe my frustration away and to let me know I can keep going in spite of having no answers. I can keep looking up even though I know that He does not always heal. He does not always spare the lives of loved ones. On some days that scares me. Why wouldn’t a perfect God want an infant with a heart condition to be healed and live?

If we view ourselves as children—loved and cared for—does that make it easier to trust Him as the One who desires our trust, who longs for us to come to Him and exercise our little faith even in the midst of despair?

What a relief it is to stop trying to figure God out and to, instead, deepen our trust in Him so much so that we can truly believe with a childlike faith.

Reflections to Ponder
Some are not interested in walking with God. From youth on, they have an idea of God that is, at best, filled with partial truths. Their concept of God might be that of a stoic controller who rains on everyone’s parades or a jolly Santa-type, dishing out gifts. Many haven’t bothered to get to know the true and living God, the father of Jesus Christ, a man who was ridiculed, a friend to the lonely, a healer of broken hearts.

Have some of the things you’ve been told about life as a Christ-follower been found to be mistruths?

The God of the Bible is a God of mystery. Can you accept not knowing the whys and hows of your life? Can you trust a God you might not always understand? Do you have a “mystery file,” a page in your journal where you store those things that have happened that you have no answer for?

Prayer
Lord, I wrestle. I don’t understand. Help me as I grapple with the things I don’t comprehend. May I lean on You so much that my trust and love for You grows.

When You Walk
As you walk, lift up your face to the sun. Note the sway of the tree limbs. Feel your heart beating. Take a deep breath. Be aware of the many ways God has orchestrated nature and all living things, including you. Could you create a tree, a flower, an insect? No, that is not your place. Let the God of mysterious creations fill your veins with the assurance that He is God.


~ From Getting Out of Bed in the Morning: Reflections of Comfort in Heartache by Alice J. Wisler
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