God's Eye View

I got thinking this morning that one persons anger can be another persons doubt which can be another persons anxiety. Our response to how we face difficult storms and trials can be so different from one person to another. Yet I do believe that the root of reality is that we each struggle with our own ability to trust God.

What God uses in our lives to teach and to train us to trust him also differs so greatly. For one person it may be abuse, for another a job loss, for another sickness, for another a spiritual battle, and for another death. Why? Why? Why?

God could have chosen any number of ways to teach us lessons that would cause us to trust him more today than we did yesterday, but for some reason known to him alone, he has chosen to place us on the path we now are embarking. Do you trust him to lead you, to keep you safe, to give him full control? Oh how our heels dig in at times!

Two people inspire my faith greatly as I think about their path this morning. The first one is Jesus. He was led into the desert full of the Spirit. Forty nights and days in a dry land, being tempted by Satan on more than one account. When God's desired time was up, Jesus left the desert full of the Spirit. Keeping your spirit filled with the fullness of the Spirit of God during dry times is never an easy task. Yet if Jesus was able so are we.

The second one that inspired my faith today is Job. An obedient man of God who God allowed to be tested knowing that he would be found faithful. The beginning of a time of testing is always the easiest. As the battles rage, even the most faithful can grow weary and want to give up. No matter how bad things got he never cursed God. Something deep inside held on to God. When Job came out of the toughest time of his life, "The Lord blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first" (Job 42:12). Obedience and faithfulness must always be sent through the fire - there is no other way it can be tested to be proven faithful.

Often we try to figure God out. Why is he doing this? What did we do? What didn't we do? We are only human that we would question God's motives and ways. Today we will be left with an answer that God spoke to Job. An answer by God, posed as a question, that demanded an answer from Job. Job 38:4 says, "Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation? Tell me, if you understand."