Is your faith founded on coffee mug slogans?

A thread on Facebook debated the age-old question of God’s rule and the ‘why’ of evil.  The writers wrestled with the assertion that “God will never give us more than we can bear.”  Many base that ‘fact’ on a passage that says: "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry." (1 Corinthians 10:13-14, NIV)  What the Word says there is that God knows a disciple’s limits and gives him the power of the Spirit to resist temptation when it comes. We can never blame God for our falls into disobedience or sin.  What this passage does not speak to is the ‘why’ of the terrible atrocities visited on humanity by evil despots.

When we see the horrors of war, the mind-bending cruelty that some suffer, there are no easy answers!   As one writer on Facebook said, “It is more courageous to ask the hard questions of God and wait for him to answer than it is to find hope on the side of coffee mug. Asking those questions requires courage because, in the end, it is very likely they will not be answered. I believe expectant waiting can only happen when we exchange our feeble platitudes for an authentic faith that engages God with the full brunt of our emotion and pain."  - Nate Pyle.  Those unwilling to walk in faith, to wrestle with doubt, and to say “I don’t know,” will either escape into a silly and superficial ‘faith,’ or they will become functional agnostics, believing God is out there somewhere, perhaps.

God can be infuriatingly unpredictable. “God, why is one dream realized and another shattered?” There are not enough answers this side of Heaven to satisfy every question. He does offer grace to help us to trust Him even when we cannot understand His ways.

Naomi, whose story is told in the book of Ruth, moved to Moab with her husband and two sons to escape a famine. It looked like finally they were getting life together, then Elimelech died. Naomi, picked up the pieces of her life and went on. Her two sons married Moabite women and for 10 years, life was good, then... both sons died! Naomi's life was tragic, her dreams shattered. Where was God in all that happened to her? Right there with her. Now that might just seem to the 'right' answer, but it is the truth.  (More on this, in a moment.)

Christian, consider that sometimes our dreams must be shattered so we can find God's dreams for us. When God allows us to go through awful circumstances, to walk in the dark;  when He appears to stand aside and allow evil to triumph, we have a critical choice. Will we wait for a new dream to replace the shattered one OR will we descend into bitterness and unbelief? In such moments, I borrow the prayer of a desperate father who brought his son for healing to Jesus and cried out when the Lord asked him to believe: "I do believe, but help me not to doubt!" (Mark 9.24) IF we will trust Him, He can give us a new dream, a new life that recovers JOY, if not happiness.

Back to Naomi’s story.  After learning of the tragic circumstances of her life, we read the ‘rest of the story’ and learn that ... "Boaz married Ruth. She became his wife. Boaz slept with her. By God's gracious gift she conceived and had a son. The town women said to Naomi, "Blessed be God! He didn't leave you without family to carry on your life. May this baby grow up to be famous in Israel! He'll make you young again! He'll take care of you in old age. And this daughter-in-law who has brought him into the world and loves you so much, why, she's worth more to you than seven sons!" Naomi took the baby and held him in her arms, cuddling him, cooing over him, waiting on him hand and foot." (Ruth 4:13-16, The Message)

That baby became the grandfather of Israel's great king, David! God used Naomi, to bridge His promise to a Gentile woman’s life. Ruth, was brought into Israel (and apparently into faith in God) and included in the line of David and the line of the Messiah, Jesus. You might read that and say, "So, does that make the pain Naomi had to endure all right?" I cannot answer that, nor can you! It simply it what it is, and my temptation to accuse God of unfairness must be leashed and faith loosed!

Life is not about us living in a perfectly balanced scale where the pain is always offset by the blessings, where the hard times are offset by the good times. Life is about living in full faith, trusting that He is able to keep us secure in His love through the shattered dreams!

Are your dreams for life shattered today? Reach out to people who will love you, weep with you, and hold you up until your faith is strong enough to touch the heart of God again. Reject the easy answers, the psycho-babble, the half- truths..... but do not reject God. Ask Him for courage to weep yet keep hope and faith intact as you pray --- "I do believe, but help me not to doubt!"

________________

O love that will not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in Thee.
I give Thee back the life I owe,
That in Thine ocean depths its flow,
May richer fuller be.

O light that foll'west all my way,
I yield my flick'ring torch to Thee.
My heart restores its borrowed ray,
That in Thy sunshine's blaze it's day,
May brighter fairer be.

O joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to Thee.
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
And feel the promise is not vain,
That morn shall tearless be.

O Love That Will Not Let Me Go
George Matteson © Public Domain