When I was a little girl, my grandfather would come to visit from out of town and often during his stay he would invite me to join him on a car ride to the shops. On our way to our destination, he would point to different homes and ask ‘I wonder who lives there?’ We would look at the clues in the yard and he would then listen intently as my imagination made up stories of who it was that lived in our neighbourhood. Being a phenomenal story-teller that he was, I now know these precious moments together taught me to bravely ask questions, explore different information, and embrace my imagination. Through these moments, my grandfather became a safe space for me later in life to ask many questions that my young mind wrestled with and it was apparent that he truly enjoyed having these discussions as much as I did.
My grandfather loved stories and I came to understand as I grew older that the stories he enjoyed repeating became his way of sharing wisdom. There is a certain story that he loved to share about an old man who lived off the grid in the woods not far from where he grew up. The old man became known for predicting the weather and people marveled at how accurate he was. His fame grew into something of myth and legend as locals made special trips to his remote location to visit him and to bring him gifts as he answered their questions about the weather. Soon this man with a gift for predicting the weather caught the attention of the news media and when he agreed to an interview the crew made a special trip to film him and his life. When the reporter asked him how it came to be that he could forecast the weather so reliably, the man pointed to an old, dusty radio in the corner and matter-of-factly told the crew that he listened to it daily and that it was the source of how he prepared weather-wise for the days ahead.
My grandfather loved to chuckle about this story and all of the sensation that was built around a simple act of listening to the radio. He could only imagine the man’s confusion as to why others wouldn’t simply take the same steps to learn the forecast for themselves. My grandfather would use this story to teach us about the importance of asking the right questions. Despite my grandfather’s love for stories and imagination, this was a cautionary tale that as humans we can have a tendency to fill in the blanks and can mistakenly create whole belief systems with partial information.
For Christians, the Bible consistently points to our identity in God's Kingdom and that God holds an incredible purpose for each of us. It is also a story of how God has pursued us despite rebellion, mistakes, and human error. And above all, it emphasizes His deep love for us. Despite all the chapters and verses as evidence, we can be susceptible to our own doubt during times when life hits at us particularly hard. As I reminisce of those little car adventures with my grandfather - sometimes the clues are in plain sight, but the questions are harder to pinpoint.
I was listening to a Christian podcast recently where Dale L. Mast, author of And David Perceived He Was King, was being interviewed and there was one question that immediately caught my attention: What lies are you believing about your identity or your circumstances that are not in alignment with how God sees you? When we rely solely on our human understanding around our identity and/or our circumstances, we only have partial information and we can get trapped in a dangerous narrative because we build our belief on what we currently see, feel, and/or understand. These myths can cause us to believe we are experiencing persecution, or worse, that we are a failure or unworthy of His love or carrying the mantle God assigned to us. When we go through circumstances that we don’t understand or come at us unexpectedly, God is not afraid of our questions asking Him why or where He is in all of it. In fact, I believe He desires to show us.
For certain, there are times when we are under persecution as the Bible says Christians will experience such (Philippians 1: 12-13), but we can also see in Acts 27:15 when the Apostle Paul was shipwrecked, that God was using circumstance as a means of course correction. Sometimes the things that happen in our lives or prayers that go unanswered are an act of God’s mercy and kindness towards us, but we are reminded that we ought to bring it to God and ask Him to help us see it from a perspective that has the benefit of a higher vantage point.
God desires to be a safe space for us to ask questions. His Word promises that he will not withhold wisdom and understanding from us (James 1:5). He lavishes it upon us as this holds true to His abundant generosity and desire for us to live wisely - in doing so we can discern God’s will for our lives and live in such a way that honours Him. With such an incredible, loving parent, we are not left on our own to build our answers before first bringing our questions to Him.
God, there are many times when we lack understanding in our current circumstances or lose sight of the identity You have given to us. Thank you that Your Word reminds us that You are always near and that You will never forsake us.
Thank you that you give us imagination, but let it not lead us away from the truth of your deep love, your mercy, and your grace. Please give us wisdom to see You at work in our lives. Help us to recognize Your presence and when we perceive that we are ship-wrecked, help us to understand that You are working on our behalf - that You are for us and not against us.
Your Word tells us that You can turn everything around for the good of those who love You, so we ask that You do this in every situation we encounter - even those that may be caused by our error. Give us understanding of what we are to believe in every season and show us the lesson in each of these so we might grow into who you set us here to be.
I ask that you lovingly guide us so You are honoured in our lives and through each and every circumstance we experience.
In Jesus' name, Amen!
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