“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” —Unknown
“Then God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He made the stars also.“
Genesis 1:16
“We wake, if ever at all, to mystery.” –Annie Dillard
It struck me this morning that we live in a ‘coarse’ age. I meet so many people who don’t seem to enjoy life at all. They seem to view things without ‘seeing’ them. There is mystery all around, and yet we seem to lack the faculties to perceive it. We probably would rather play X-box than write a poem, paint a portrait, or gaze through a telescope.
The older I get, the more life astonishes me. There is so much mystery saturating my life: nature, the night sky, a tiny baby, and my hands– all just ‘skimming the surface.’ When I consider the multi-layered complexity of life, I tend to ‘short-out.’
God reveals Himself as, ‘the God of wonders.’ When I consider our phenomenal universe with more than a million billion galaxies, I start to lose it. Once I camped on a remote beach in Mexico. There wasn’t any electricity, so at night it really got dark. Lying on my back I saw the ‘Milky Way’ for perhaps the first time. It was magnificent! But suddenly I was afraid. I ran back to my tent terrified. I guess I got ‘overloaded’ by all that I saw. I was shaking by seeing the awesome revelation of a creative God.
“When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained, 4What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him?”
Psalm 8:3-4, NKJV
For the freshly awakened believer, it is almost beyond belief to see so many people ‘sleepwalking’ through life. The somnambulistic masses move through life with nary an inkling of what it is all about. They are completely oblivious as it would seem; they are unable to see the wonders of creation, much less than the Creator. The enemy blinds so many to God’s presence and His redemption. The darkness is almost palpable.
“Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.”
Psalm 96:3
“I would rather live in a world where my life is surrounded by mystery than live in a world so small that my mind could comprehend it.”— Harry Emerson Fosdick
“Youarethe Godwho does wonders; You have declared Your strength among the peoples.”
Psalm 77:14
“When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained, 4What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him?” Psalm 8:3-4, NKJV For the freshly awakened believer, it is almost beyond belief to see so many people ‘sleepwalking’ through life. The somnambulistic masses move through life with nary an inkling of what it is all about. They are completely oblivious as it would seem; they are unable to see the wonders of creation, much less than the Creator. The enemy blinds so many to God’s presence and His redemption. The darkness is almost palpable. “Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.” Psalm 96:3 “I would rather live in a world where my life is surrounded by mystery than live in a world so small that my mind could comprehend it.”— Harry Emerson Fosdick “Youarethe Godwho does wonders; You have declared Your strength among the peoples.” Psalm 77:14 When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained, 4What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him?”
Psalm 8:3-4, NKJV
For the freshly awakened believer, it is almost beyond belief to see so many people ‘sleepwalking’ through life. The somnambulistic masses move through life with nary an inkling of what it is all about. They are completely oblivious as it would seem; they are unable to see the wonders of creation, much less than the Creator. The enemy blinds so many to God’s presence and His redemption. The darkness is almost palpable.
“Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.”
Psalm 96:3
“I would rather live in a world where my life is surrounded by mystery than live in a world so small that my mind could comprehend it.”— Harry Emerson Fosdick
“Youarethe Godwho does wonders; You have declared Your strength among the peoples.”
John Piper, Pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis. Writer and Speaker, DesiringGod.org
Originally dated, July 14, 2008 | By: John Piper
One of the reasons God rarely gives micro reasons for his painful providences, but regularly gives magnificent macro reasons, is that there are too many micro reasons for us to manage, namely, millions and millions and millions and millions and millions. God says things like:
These bad things happened to you because I intend to work it together for your good (Romans 8).
These happened so that you would rely more on God who raises the dead (2 Corinthians 1).
This happened so that the gold and silver of your faith would be refined (1 Peter 1).
This thorn is so that the power of Christ would be magnified in your weakness (2 Corinthians 12).
But we can always object that there are other easier ways for God to accomplish those things. We want to know more specifics: Why now? Why this much? Why this often? Why this way? Why these people?
The problem is, we would have to be God to grasp all that God is doing in our problems. In fact, pushing too hard for more detailed explanations from God is a kind of demand that we be God.
Think of this, you are a blacksmith making horseshoes. You are hammering on a white hot shoe and it ricochets off and hits you in the leg and burns you. In your haste to tend to your leg you let the shoe alone unfinished. You wonder why God let this happen. You were singing a hymn and doing his will. Your helper, not knowing the horseshoe was unfinished gathered it up and put it with the others.
Later there was an invasion of your country by a hostile army with a powerful cavalry. They came through your town and demanded that you supply them with food and with shoes for their horses. You comply. Their commander has his horse shod by his own smith using the stolen horseshoes, and the unfinished shoe with the thin weak spot is put on the commander’s horse.
In the decisive battle against the loyal troops defending your homeland the enemy commander is leading the final charge. The weak shoe snaps and catches on a root and causes his horse to fall. He crashes to the ground and his own soldiers, galloping at full speed, trample him to death. This causes such a confusion that the defenders are able to rout the enemy and the country is saved. Now you might say, well, it would sure help me trust God if he informed me of these events so that I would know why the horseshoe ricocheted and burned my leg. Well maybe it would help you. Maybe not.
God cannot make plain all he is doing, because there are millions and millions and millions and millions of effects of every event in your life, the good and the bad. God guides them all.They all have micro purposes and macro purposes. He cannot tell you all of them because your brain can’t hold all of them.
Trust does not demand more than God has told us. And he has given us immeasurably precious promises that he is in control of all things and only does good to his children. And he has given us a very thick book where we can read story after story after story about how he rules for the good of his people. Let’s trust him and not ask for what our brains cannot contain.
“Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful.”
1 Corinthians 1:27, NLT
God has particular preferences when it comes to peculiar people. He selectively chooses. These choices are made up in his mind and heart. For us to criticize them, is by association, faulting God. It just happens to be that He likes losers. He chooses uneven performers over the gifted and learned.
“Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you.”
1 Corinthians 1:26
There have been very many men and women tossed out on the trash heap of humanity. They are often regarded as useless and irrelevant. But God loves the outcast and forgotten.
We who are the disabled know weakness intimately. We must deal with it 24/7; and it never takes a holiday. We are broken believers who are in love with Jesus and yet we are broken. Talk about having faith for healing?
What about the faith to be sick?
People who have experienced dealings so harsh– most likely— there is little pride or arrogance left. These are usually the marginalized, the losers. People like Moses,
“Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”
Exodus 3:11
Someone once said, “When God intends to use a man or woman He takes them and crushes them.” The inevitable breaking is followed by a release of the Holy Spirit from their lives. Moses is proof of God’s renovating presence. You want the presence? Prepare for years of roughness, and misunderstanding. Prepare for the crushing.
At the burning bush, Moses was given the assignment of returning, confronting Pharaoh, and leading all the captives to the Promised Land of Canaan. He had just spent 40 years as a refugee/shepherd. In spite of a good education he had received while in Egypt as a prince, that wasn’t why he had been selected.
Moses has definite feelings of inadequacy and failure.
And his time in the desert did nothing to relieve this. But a 40 year “prison” term will do that. In chapter 4 of Exodus we read “the back and forth” conversation between Moses and the Lord God. All of Moses’ objections were consistently volleyed back with comfort and promise.
As you read this, you may be aware of God’s presence.
He has called you to do something for him. Maybe you have wandered off the path, gotten lost and suffered much. The “desert” will do that. But it all can be forgiven. His alert grace is a velvet battering ram of grace and love. He will (and does) discipline you–but only because he is passionately in love with your soul, and His glory.
2 Chronicles 20:15–22
Broken Believers 