A Blessing in Disguise
You, O God, have tested
us;
You have tried us as
silver is tried.
You brought us into the
net;
You laid a crushing
burden on our backs.
You let men ride over
our heads.
We went through fire
and through water;
But You brought
us out to full satisfaction.
—Psalm 66:10-12
“You…You…You…You…You…You."
The psalmist sees God in every ordeal: Temptations, trials, obstructions,
burdens, oppression, fire and rain—all these crises are mediated through God's
hands.
It’s
an enigma: Though others afflict us, or we afflict ourselves, God accepts
responsibility for all that befalls us. Scripture affirms it. I can not
explain it. I can only state it.
One
of the most startling statements in the Bible occurs on an occasion in which
Satan, having done all he could to torment Job, appears a second time before
God, who takes responsibility for all that Satan did to Job: "You
incited me to act against Job" (Job 2:3).
If
events are random the world becomes a very scary place, filled with random,
meaningless, gratuitous heartbreak and sorrow. But if God in His Love and
Wisdom orders all that happens to us here, we can accept each sorrow
though we may not understand it. “Why?” we ask in our despair. God says, “Dear
child, you wouldn’t understand it if I explained it to you. Just trust me.”
“Though
you slay me,” Job said, “I will trust you” (Job 13:15). Job did not
enter into acceptance lightly. He struggled with frustration and anxiety as you
and I do. But despite his perplexity, he knew that God was good and could be
trusted. He could then accept all that God brought his way.
Acceptance
brings an inexplicable sense of well-being that the biblical writers called
"blessedness"—a point the psalmist also makes: "You brought us
out (of suffering) to full satisfaction." (66:12). “Full satisfaction.”
It’s the word David uses in his Shepherd Psalm: "My cup overflows"
(Psalm 23:5).
Good when He gives,
supremely good;
Nor less when He denies:
Afflictions, from His sovereign hand,
Are blessings in disguise. —author unknown
David Roper
9.21.17
In
Acceptance
He
said, ‘I will forget the dying faces;
The
empty places,
They
shall be filled again.
O voices moaning deep within me, cease.’
But vain the word; vain, vain:
Not in forgetting lieth peace.
He
said, ‘I will crowd action upon action,
The
strife of faction
Shall
stir me and sustain;
O tears
that drown the fire of manhood cease.’
But
vain the word; vain, vain:
Not in
endeavour lieth peace.
He
said, ‘I will withdraw me and be quiet,
Why
meddle in life’s riot?
Shut be
my door to pain.
Desire,
thou dost befool me, thou shalt cease.’
But
vain the word; vain, vain:
Not in
aloofness lieth peace.
He
said, ‘I will submit; I am defeated.
God
hath depleted
My life
of its rich gain.
O
futile murmurings, why will ye not cease?’
But
vain the word; vain, vain:
Not in
submission lieth peace.
He
said, ‘I will accept the breaking sorrow
Which
God tomorrow
Will to
His son explain.’
Then
did the turmoil deep within me cease.
Not
vain the word, not vain;
For in
Acceptance lieth peace.
—Amy
Carmichael
E-musings are archived at http://davidroper.blogspot.com
No comments:
Post a Comment