How to Love God who is Able, But Does Not. . .
They said it as they stood near a furnace hot enough to kill men who came near.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego told king Nebuchadnezzar, “. . .our God, whom we serve, is able to rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire. And from your hand, O king, let him rescue us. And if not, let it be known to you, O king, that ⌊we will not serve your gods⌋, and the statue of gold that you have set up we will not worship.”
They felt the heat of the furnace and they knew. God can save us. Their prayer was that God would save them, but they also knew something we forget.
God can’t be figured out. His ways are different than ours. We can know God has power to save us, but we also have to decide to worship Him alone before we know if He will save us.
And God saved Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
The wind blew this week and God is able.
God could have pushed the tornado toward a jail or meth house. Instead He allowed it to hit two elementary schools.
He was able, but He did not.
He protected our house and city from the storm, but He didn’t do that for Moore or Shawnee or many other places.
He gave a baby to the Meth addict who doesn’t care and He didn’t give a baby to the woman who desperately wants one.
How do you love a God who is able, but does not?
How do you let go of what you think is best when God seems to keep good things from you?
And I can’t get around the fact that I do not know or understand. It is a mystery – the way God works or doesn’t work.
And still His Word says it,
“I have plans for you. . . plans to prosper you and not harm you plans to give you a future and a hope.”
Sometimes our view of future is limited to time on this earth, but God, He sees past this earth and looks to eternity. He knows when hard things will bring a future and a hope in eternity.
And when the wind whips wild we can only cling to that truth. That God knows and He has plans and His ways are not ours.
Still I grab for more. I question and ask why and I wait to hear. I wait for a voice.
I may have to wait until I see Him face-to-face. Then all that I don’t understand will be silenced. For He is just and we will all know that everything that happened on this earth was handled by a just God. All the injustice, God will avenge.
Whether the wind blows or the pregnancy test only has one line or you have to say goodbye again and again – we have to choose whom we will worship and whom we will serve.
Me?! I will worship the God who is able, but sometimes doesn’t.
Because to whom else can I go?
He is God, He is faithful, He is just, He is love.
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I greatly appreciate your very mature insight. I have long thought we incorrectly burden the hurting and confused innocents with our distorted pronouncements.
When my first wife was diagnosed with cancer, her first question to me was, “Am I going to die?”. Obviously, we all are going to die but she was asking me if she was going to die soon from the effects of this disease.
My answer was, “I do not know.”, but many others seemed to know and their answer was “NO”. When the disease returned the second time, there was less interest in her condition and less confidence what God would do. The third time, everyone was hoping the fire would go out and we could forget this whole furnace thing.
Three years later, she did die.
Three more years and it was my turn at the furnace door. I didn’t bother our church for prayer or even explain the growing lump on my neck. One trusted sister approached me one Sunday morning and said, “Brother Ware, God said to tell you he has healing your cancer.” I replied, “Thank you, I accept it.”
I followed thru on an agreement with my current wife and approximately one month later, the cancer was gone.
A faithful woman, mother and wife was diagnosed with cancer after mine and died within 6 months, inspite of dozens of people quoting scripture, “believing God”, and “claiming healing”. She and her family quietly accepted the Heat of the Fire amid lame excuses for why God did not heal her.
I do not know and never could understand the pain of being barren.
I also cannot comprehend GOD.
Thank you for sharing this truth. I am so glad I can’t figure Him out.