I DON’T KNOW
All weekend I pondered on what my three little words were going to be. I have disconnected from life because I just needed some time to unwind and rest. The more thought I put into it, the more I had no idea what to do. I even have lists upon lists of 3 Little Words, but nothing came to me. Then I finally came up with these three I DON’T KNOW!
Last week when we were at MD Anderson Lauren, and I discussed many things and many of the answers to the questions, I had to respond by saying I DON’T KNOW!
I don’t know why things happen.
I don’t understand why things happen.
I don’t know what will work and what won’t work.
I don’t know what tomorrow will bring, nor do I know what the next hour will bring.
I don’t know what I don’t know.
I don’t know why people are hurting; I don’t know why we have cancer; I don’t know why people hurt people.
We have to look at life, not by our perspective because when we do, these questions will never have an answer. We must look at life from God’s perspective. Sometimes God uses things He hates, like cancer, divorce, addiction, death, and other things to accomplish what He loves. He uses that which we mourn over to bring glory to Him. His glory can be seen through brokenness.
It is ok to say I JUST DON’T KNOW!
BUT and I do love that transition word, there are some things I do know.
I do know that God is good!
I do know that God loves us all the time!
I do know that when we suffer, God suffers!
I do know that when we cry, God cries!
I do know that God is in our boat and on our bus even when we feel He isn’t present.
I do know that when we draw closer to God, we can feel his presence!
I do know when we listen for God’s voice, we can hear Him!
I do know that God comforts us!
I do know the reason for the season!
I do know that Jesus is the best Christmas present ever!
Instead of asking why and trying to understand what we don’t know, REMEMBER WHAT WE DO KNOW.
Deuteronomy 31:6 be strong, and courageous do not be afraid for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.
Psalm 91:4 he will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings, you will find refuge.
Psalm 86:15 but you Lord are a compassionate and gracious god slow to anger abounding in love and faithfulness.
Psalm 136: 26 his love endures forever
Phil 4:13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.
1 Peter 5:7 cast all your anxieties on him
All through the Bible, there are hurting people asking questions. David is one of them. Many of his Psalms he wrote when he was broken. He asked some very painful questions. At times David got an answer, sometimes there was nothing. Whether it was God speaking or silence, David’s questions enabled his faith to grow stronger. When his faith grew, he didn’t need to know the answer.
We need to be like David and pour out our hearts and soul to the Lord. If you are familiar with the Psalms, you know that in one Psalm, David will be distraught, but then his tone will change throughout, and He will become close to God again.
Even Jesus tells us we won’t get it. John 13:7 Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”
This scripture is when Jesus was going to wash the disciple’s feet. Peter said to Jesus, “you aren’t going to wash my feet.” Jesus said,
“If I don’t wash you, you can’t be part of what I’m doing.”
To be a part of what Jesus is doing and to be a reflection of Him, we must go through suffering. It is through the suffering that we are brought closer to Christ. We shouldn’t ask why we are suffering or why we have problems. We should ask God how we can use our situations to glorify Him. We must trust Christ enough and realize He knows what He is doing. We must surrender to Him.
We do not know things that happen in this world, many times we will answer with I DON’T KNOW, but let me ask you does it matter?
CHALLENGES OF THE WEEK
- Keep the daily appt
- Dive deep in the word
- Quit trying to understand and focus on what you do know about God
- Fill your cup with Christ so you can fill other cups
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