Have you ever been so frustrated that God won’t rescue you from that storm in your life? You know He is more than able, so why is He allowing you to suffer? Surely, He sees your pain and weakness. What about all the verses you memorized about being healed by His stripes, and that He will do whatever you ask in His name?
I wish I could answer all these questions in a few short words, but pithy, clever clichés just don’t cut it sometimes, do they? Unfortunately, there are just some things we will never understand here on this earth. We are not capable of grasping the big picture, but we can have assurance that we are held firmly in the hands of God. He will carry us through, and He will never ever abandon us.
God only knows how this will all come together for our good. On the contrary, with our limited mortal minds we are unable to fathom the depths of God’s unlimited love and wisdom. However, our trials give us the opportunity to see the hand of God moving mightily in our lives. The same situation that we think is hurting us at the present is actually the vehicle God is using to show us more of His goodness, and to draw us into a deeper relationship with Him.
One thing I have observed is that it is only through our struggles that we can develop the character and strength we need to fulfill God’s purpose in our lives. It is often against the backdrop of pain and suffering that we are able to perceive the lovely brush strokes of God’s provision and grace intermingled within. If everything were easy and comfortable, we would never experience growth or come to understand some of the most amazing aspects of God’s character. It is when He carries us through the storms that we come to know Him more intimately than we ever could from the outside of the storm.
So, what is happening when God doesn’t answer our prayers the way we expect?
For one, God’s answers ALWAYS trump our expectations. Even when we think we know what is best, God’s plan is always better. When you think of it, who are we to stand before God and tell Him how to deliver us? Our deliverance will surely come, but it will come in a much better way than how we prayed!
When the Israelites fled Egypt, and faced the Red Sea on one side, and a return to bondage on the other, they had no idea that God was getting ready to part the sea for them. From their perspective, they felt trapped. They began complaining and grumbling that God had led them into the desert to let them die.
This is the point many of us find ourselves. We are right there on the verge of God’s deliverance, but we are too fixated on what has us bound. We are tempted to think God has abandoned us. Or, we allow ourselves to believe His promises aren’t what they are cracked up to be after all.
It’s time to change our perspective!
Imagine that moment when the waters began parting, and dry land appeared before them. Suddenly things looked different as the multitude traveled to the other side. If that isn’t mind-blowing enough, just picture the reaction of the Israelites when the enemy that had pursued them was swept away and drowned in the very same water that they thought had them trapped just hours before.
Let that be your story! Let that thing that has you bound be the very instrument God will use to perfect you. Instead of stamping your foot and wavering in your faith, wait and see how God will deliver you. He will do it! But, He will do it in His way and His time. He will work it out in the way that will bring out the best in and through you, and in the way that will give Him the most glory. In the end, God will right every wrong and restore everything that was lost or broken. You can count on it!
In the meantime, here is something else to think about. If God doesn’t allow us to have limitations or weaknesses, He will not have the opportunity to demonstrate His strength. Our self-sufficiency and independence can actually hinder God from doing something truly amazing in and through our lives. When we have a handicap or challenge, it causes us to look to God as our source.
God can show us his mercy, compassion, providence, protection, and greatness through our problems. If we never had a problem, how would we know He could solve it? If we never had a need, how would we know He could meet it? We need to rid ourselves of pride and recognize our dependence on Him, and then we are in the perfect position for Him to really show out!
The apostle Paul had a perpetual “thorn in the flesh” that God had allowed to keep him humble, and God would not take it away. Sometimes our struggles in life are merely a thorn in our flesh for the same purpose. Read Paul’s words and ponder his reaction to his own suffering.
“Because of the extravagance of those revelations, and so I wouldn’t get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan’s angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn’t think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me,
‘My grace is enough; it’s all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness.
Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ’s strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.” 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 MSG
May this change in perspective restore your hope and faith, regardless of your circumstances. Hold on and wait to see what God will do!
I remain confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the Lord
in the land of the living.
Wait for the Lord;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord. Psalm 27:13-14 NIV
