God is speaking clearly. Or perhaps I’m listening more attentively. Either way, I’ve been pummeled by His love, admonished with His gentleness, and encouraged with His kindness. He’s teaching and reminding me that everything is His.
“When I think that something is mine, the only person I’m fooling is myself.”
If there’s really nothing new under the sun, then thinking that I came up with the idea is flatly absurd. God is the owner of everything, and that would include new ideas (at least new to me). Therefore, rather than assume I somehow deserve to take the lead for every idea I come up with, I should first acknowledge that if I had an idea, God gave it to me. I then need to ask Him what He wants me to do with it, not try to figure things out on my own.
“If I don’t stop to ask God if He wants me to do something, why should I be surprised when things don’t work out the way I planned?”
It’s very easy for me to make a decision on my own. After all, I have experience to know how to work through situations and make snap-decisions. The problem with snap-decisions is that, unless they’re directed by God, I risk making the wrong decision.
If I really want to live a God-centered – a God-chaser – life, then my will should be His will. The best way to know His will is to pray about everything.
“Could it be your arrogance that makes you think God owes you an explanation?” (from Francis Chan)
The short answer is: “Yes.” God owes me nothing. I owe Him everything. For me to assume that God needs to share His motives, timing, and decisions with me every step of the way – especially when I can’t understand why things are happening – is nothing short of arrogance.
The revelation God gave me after praying about this was: “If God doesn’t tell me why something is or isn’t happening, then He doesn’t need for me to know.”
These God-thoughts have been revelation to me. I hope they resonate with you, too.
