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Letting go; questioning God - 7/5/2008 11:26:28 AM
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mutinywxgirl
Posts: 12992
Joined: 4/29/2005
From: west coast of FL
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Ebony101 wrote this in another thread, and I really thought it was a good topic for discussion.
quote:
'God doesn't always tell us why something is happening to us. Rather the question He loves to answer is,"What would you have me do here and now?"'
A tough question to ask, when humanly we want to weep, moan and stamp.
I still have to let go, but I'm getting there slowly but surely.
What are your thoughts on this? I figure that we singles should have a lot to add here.
_____________________________
When blood and water hit the ground.
Walls we couldn't move came crashing down.
We were free and made alive.
The day true love died. The day true love died.
Lisa is happy THE ROWDIES ARE BACK!
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/5/2008 11:37:23 AM
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Prairiehiker
Posts: 1355
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i don't agree with the statement about the two questions. I mean, what is wrong with asking God the first question. As long as you don't get stuck and obsess with finding the answer, I think it's a valid question to ask God why He allowed certain things to happen. I've asked them many times. Every time someone dies, got into an accident, looses a job, relationship ends, or even starts etc, people asks those, and I believe that if we keep those questions in mind, then we'd learn something when the answers come. Things eventually fall into place and you learn to see it from God's perspective. But if we let go of the question, then, we might not learn.
It's good to ask the "what" question because it means you're living in the now, as opposed to living for when the answer to the "why" question comes.
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/5/2008 11:47:01 AM
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okrox
Posts: 155
Joined: 4/28/2005
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Excellent topic.
I think the extent to which you wrestle with letting go reveals the extent to which you are willing to engage with God. Your whole life, I think, is an exercise in letting go, because the only purpose for this life on this planet is to teach us to love and trust God.
I think you learn to trust God by your history with God. You let go of something, see God work in that area of your life, then you're more willing and able to let go of something else, maybe something bigger. Then something bigger. Then something bigger. It's a long process and it's not over 'til it's over. I think God knows that about us, and is patient with us. I think that's why God gives most of us 70+ years to muck it out.
And the desire for marriage is one of the biggies. (If you have children, your hopes and fears for them rank right up there.) I think, for those of us singles who do wrestle with the "why's" -- or more accurately, "why-not's" can take comfort in the fact that as long as we are wrestling with it, God is in it.
_____________________________
Redeeming love has been my theme, and shall be 'til I die.
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/5/2008 12:00:34 PM
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ShallbeRebuilt
Posts: 1995
Joined: 11/8/2007
Status: online
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I learned when my ddh was killed that the answer to "why" simply wasn't what I wanted to know. It wouldn't be helpful to going on. It wouldn't take the pain away. It wouldn't change what I had to do now.
I thought a lot of the "why" questions through. "Why did he have to die?" for example. The answer to this would not help me get on with life after his death. Really, the only reason I might want to know this is to argue with God about His reasoning.  So knowing the answer to that why is not helpful.
How about "Why me"? Was it because I sinned somehow and brought it on our family? I cannot go back and change what I did. If it was my fault, then it just was and there is nothing I can do about it now. But we are ALL very sinful. So why wasn't someone else picked out to get blasted for their sin? It turns out the answer to "Why me"? is the same one Job got.
"Why me"? God answers "I Am."
And actually, the answer to "Why me?" is the answer to any other "Why" questions you can ask.
So I spent no time asking God why.
I did ask God HOW. How do I live now? How do I minister to others now? How do I parent alone? How do I deal with the loneliness?
So I guess you could say that I agree with Ebony101. You can ask why, but it's very likely it'll be a pointless pursuit--God does not often answer that question, and when He does, the answer is seldom very satisfying.
But you can ask "How." That's what Mary asked Him. "How can this thing be?"
He liked her question.
As far as it relates to singleness...at first I thought I could answer the why's for myself. I'm single because my husband died, I'm old, I'm fat, I'm ugly, I have 4 children, because God has something(s) for me to do as a single I can't do married, yadda. But I discovered over time that that is malarky, because people like me get happily married every day.
Why am I single?
Because He IS.
And that has to be enough. And it is.
besiderself
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/5/2008 12:13:32 PM
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WaitingforBoaz
Posts: 3560
Joined: 2/11/2008
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You have hit upon my daily mantra " What Now Lord?"
When I was attending my grief share group, there were 8 of us experiencing a death of some kind, not all spouses. I attended faithfully every week and every week I heard the same word over and over and over again. Why?
Why me?
Why My son, sister, daugher etc.
Why this way?
Why now?
I was the odd woman out.....I knew the answer to "why" so I never asked.
The answer to why is: He is God and I am not.
Could He really give me an answer to why he took my husband at such a young age and in such a horrible way, and when He is done explaining it to me, me being the human that I am, would I be able to say, "Oh, well thank you for explaining it, I so totally get it now, I feel much better." No Way!!!!! Not in this life. Some things are just beyond our ability to understand as humans. It is enough to know that He is God and He is in control. I can trust Him.
Therefore, my question is not Why? but What?
What do you want me to do now?
What is your will for my future?
What is your will for my children?
What about ministry?
What should I be doing to prepare for your plan, whatever that may be?
What do you want me to do until you reveal "what"? LOL!!!!
_____________________________
You cannot leave the past behind, if you keep making it the present.
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/5/2008 12:17:31 PM
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WaitingforBoaz
Posts: 3560
Joined: 2/11/2008
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quote:
ORIGINAL: besiderself
I learned when my ddh was killed that the answer to "why" simply wasn't what I wanted to know. It wouldn't be helpful to going on. It wouldn't take the pain away. It wouldn't change what I had to do now.
I thought a lot of the "why" questions through. "Why did he have to die?" for example. The answer to this would not help me get on with life after his death. Really, the only reason I might want to know this is to argue with God about His reasoning. So knowing the answer to that why is not helpful.
How about "Why me"? Was it because I sinned somehow and brought it on our family? I cannot go back and change what I did. If it was my fault, then it just was and there is nothing I can do about it now. But we are ALL very sinful. So why wasn't someone else picked out to get blasted for their sin? It turns out the answer to "Why me"? is the same one Job got.
"Why me"? God answers "I Am."
And actually, the answer to "Why me?" is the answer to any other "Why" questions you can ask.
So I spent no time asking God why.
I did ask God HOW. How do I live now? How do I minister to others now? How do I parent alone? How do I deal with the loneliness?
So I guess you could say that I agree with Ebony101. You can ask why, but it's very likely it'll be a pointless pursuit--God does not often answer that question, and when He does, the answer is seldom very satisfying.
But you can ask "How." That's what Mary asked Him. "How can this thing be?"
He liked her question.
As far as it relates to singleness...at first I thought I could answer the why's for myself. I'm single because my husband died, I'm old, I'm fat, I'm ugly, I have 4 children, because God has something(s) for me to do as a single I can't do married, yadda. But I discovered over time that that is malarky, because people like me get happily married every day.
Why am I single?
Crosspost! 
_____________________________
You cannot leave the past behind, if you keep making it the present.
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/5/2008 4:49:23 PM
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.Pammy
Posts: 4110
Joined: 4/11/2005
From: Mechanicsburg, PA, USA
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I'm on board with this as well. It never occurs to me to ask why, only what am I to do with this.
It's been almost two years since I lost my father, and I'm still trying to figure that one out. I guess I never realized what a tight grip he had on me, or what a lasting effect there would be.
_____________________________
Pam
<< The Wedding Arch at The Hemingway Home in Key West
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/5/2008 5:38:46 PM
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David_D
Posts: 126
Joined: 11/11/2005
From: OH AYTCH - EYE OH
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We all played the "why" game as kids.
"Dad, why is the dog eating grass?"
"Because his stomach is bothering him."
"Why?"
"Because he ate something he shouldn't have."
"Why?"
"Because he was hungry."
"Why?"
"Because his blood sugar was low."
"Why?"
That's not to reduce this topic to a joke or something trivial, but I can't see a "why" question answered by God as leading anywhere but to more "why" questions. Eventually, like the child, we'd reach a point where we just can't understand the answers anymore.
_____________________________
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus
O for grace to trust Him more!
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/5/2008 5:47:49 PM
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woodwind228
Posts: 473
Joined: 5/8/2008
From: Atlanta
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I typically ask, "What am I supposed to learn from this?" I avoid the "why?". God has a reason for everything that happens. He has plans for us that we may not always understand, and reasons He may not be willing to share with you at that time. It could be that there is something He's trying to teach us, it could be the example/testimony we inadvertly give to someone that's watching us to see how we react/handle adversity, or a whole plethora of reasons. It's just best to trust in Him - after all, it's not like He doesn't know what He's doing.
_____________________________
*~* Susan *~*
These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world. --John 16:33 KJV
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/6/2008 7:31:58 PM
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kj88il
Posts: 1680
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: besiderself
I learned when my ddh was killed that the answer to "why" simply wasn't what I wanted to know. It wouldn't be helpful to going on. It wouldn't take the pain away. It wouldn't change what I had to do now.
I thought a lot of the "why" questions through. "Why did he have to die?" for example. The answer to this would not help me get on with life after his death. Really, the only reason I might want to know this is to argue with God about His reasoning. So knowing the answer to that why is not helpful.
How about "Why me"? Was it because I sinned somehow and brought it on our family? I cannot go back and change what I did. If it was my fault, then it just was and there is nothing I can do about it now. But we are ALL very sinful. So why wasn't someone else picked out to get blasted for their sin? It turns out the answer to "Why me"? is the same one Job got.
"Why me"? God answers "I Am."
And actually, the answer to "Why me?" is the answer to any other "Why" questions you can ask.
So I spent no time asking God why.
I did ask God HOW. How do I live now? How do I minister to others now? How do I parent alone? How do I deal with the loneliness?
So I guess you could say that I agree with Ebony101. You can ask why, but it's very likely it'll be a pointless pursuit--God does not often answer that question, and when He does, the answer is seldom very satisfying.
But you can ask "How." That's what Mary asked Him. "How can this thing be?"
He liked her question.
As far as it relates to singleness...at first I thought I could answer the why's for myself. I'm single because my husband died, I'm old, I'm fat, I'm ugly, I have 4 children, because God has something(s) for me to do as a single I can't do married, yadda. But I discovered over time that that is malarky, because people like me get happily married every day.
Why am I single?
Because He IS.
And that has to be enough. And it is.
besiderself
wow, esther.....i think this is the first time i have to disagree with some of what you're saying here.
1) i have to ask.....do you believe God punishes us for our sins? were you sincerely questioning if your husband's death was a result of your behavior?
i personally believe God doesn't punish us...rather satan has been given the power while we are on this earth to bring trying, hurtful, confusing, even heart-wrenching and devastating things into our lives. and i believe God is always waiting for us to turn to Him for comfort, counsel, guidance, peace...and so much more.
2) i also don't believe it is always a "pointless pursuit" to ask "why?" very often, i do a lot of my spiritual growing when i've asked "why?".
sometimes i need to spend time contemplating what choices i made that perhaps brought that situation about (or maybe just made it a little worse than it had to be), or reflect on the situation after the storm as passed....when i can finally see how God's hand was in it the whole time. even if i don't believe He brought the bad thing into my life, i can see how He protected me, led me, used me, strengthened me...and blessed me through it.
3) i also think that sometimes God wants us to ask "why?"....to use the brains He gave us to work our way toward the solution He always had in mind. i think "questioning with faith" is understandable to God. He knows we don't always...and sometimes may never...understand everything that happens in this life on earth....but He's given us an inquisitive mind for a reason.
this may seem silly....but i immediately thot how, as a mother of a young child...it was so tempting sometimes to just tell them the answer to a problem, riddle, etc. but i knew i wouldn't be helping them if i did; they needed to figure it out in a way they could understand...and learn for themselves.
but don't get me wrong......one should be careful not to get stuck on the 'why?". if there's no clear answer...then you just have to let it go and trust God's will. and hopefully, you've already prayed, "Lord...i don't understand at all. and i'm hurting and tired...so You may have to carry me a while. refresh me, Lord...so that i can hear Your voice. then help me pick myself up so i can do whatever it is You want me to do now. for i trust Your will, Lord....may Your will be done."
_____________________________
Kimberly
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
Matt 11:29 "...for I am gentle & humble in heart, & you will find rest for your souls."
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/6/2008 9:07:02 PM
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ju-ju
Posts: 66
Joined: 4/28/2008
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Prairiehiker
i don't agree with the statement about the two questions. I mean, what is wrong with asking God the first question. As long as you don't get stuck and obsess with finding the answer, I think it's a valid question to ask God why He allowed certain things to happen. I've asked them many times. Every time someone dies, got into an accident, looses a job, relationship ends, or even starts etc, people asks those, and I believe that if we keep those questions in mind, then we'd learn something when the answers come. Things eventually fall into place and you learn to see it from God's perspective. But if we let go of the question, then, we might not learn.
It's good to ask the "what" question because it means you're living in the now, as opposed to living for when the answer to the "why" question comes.
as usual ( ) i agree with Prairiehiker on this one.
God is my Abba, my "daddy". we (ideally) can go to our earthly daddy, crawl up in his lap and ask him anything. God is EVEN MORESO our Daddy. i don't think He gasps when we ask why about something. i think He totally understands why we want to understand, to grasp things that go on around us and to us. i'll go so far as to say that i believe it pleases Him if we come to Him because that says we acknowledge He has all the answers, not the world, not our best friends, not our family.
the sin would be to ask why while regarding Him suspiciously, looking at Him sideways......and it would be a question shot at Him from a distance rather than from having crawled up into His lap. that's the kind of why that questions His authority, His sovereignty, His goodness, His wisdom.
so i'm never afraid to ask Him why. never. i love knowing i can go right up to Him.
_____________________________
ju-ju <>< (just little ol' me)
http://www.myspace.com/julishines
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/7/2008 7:43:47 AM
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ShallbeRebuilt
Posts: 1995
Joined: 11/8/2007
Status: online
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quote:
ORIGINAL: kj88il
quote:
ORIGINAL: besiderself
I learned when my ddh was killed that the answer to "why" simply wasn't what I wanted to know. It wouldn't be helpful to going on. It wouldn't take the pain away. It wouldn't change what I had to do now.
I thought a lot of the "why" questions through. "Why did he have to die?" for example. The answer to this would not help me get on with life after his death. Really, the only reason I might want to know this is to argue with God about His reasoning. So knowing the answer to that why is not helpful.
How about "Why me"? Was it because I sinned somehow and brought it on our family? I cannot go back and change what I did. If it was my fault, then it just was and there is nothing I can do about it now. But we are ALL very sinful. So why wasn't someone else picked out to get blasted for their sin? It turns out the answer to "Why me"? is the same one Job got.
"Why me"? God answers "I Am."
And actually, the answer to "Why me?" is the answer to any other "Why" questions you can ask.
So I spent no time asking God why.
I did ask God HOW. How do I live now? How do I minister to others now? How do I parent alone? How do I deal with the loneliness?
So I guess you could say that I agree with Ebony101. You can ask why, but it's very likely it'll be a pointless pursuit--God does not often answer that question, and when He does, the answer is seldom very satisfying.
But you can ask "How." That's what Mary asked Him. "How can this thing be?"
He liked her question.
As far as it relates to singleness...at first I thought I could answer the why's for myself. I'm single because my husband died, I'm old, I'm fat, I'm ugly, I have 4 children, because God has something(s) for me to do as a single I can't do married, yadda. But I discovered over time that that is malarky, because people like me get happily married every day.
Why am I single?
Because He IS.
And that has to be enough. And it is.
besiderself
wow, esther.....i think this is the first time i have to disagree with some of what you're saying here.
1) i have to ask.....do you believe God punishes us for our sins? were you sincerely questioning if your husband's death was a result of your behavior?
i personally believe God doesn't punish us...rather satan has been given the power while we are on this earth to bring trying, hurtful, confusing, even heart-wrenching and devastating things into our lives. and i believe God is always waiting for us to turn to Him for comfort, counsel, guidance, peace...and so much more.
Kimberly;
No, I don't believe my husband's death was because of sin in my life. But I have heard some people in tragic circumstances wrestle with that concept. That's why I put it as a possible "why" question. I personally lean more toward what you wrote, except that I believe God orchestrates everything, even what the enemy is allowed to do to us.
quote:
2) i also don't believe it is always a "pointless pursuit" to ask "why?" very often, i do a lot of my spiritual growing when i've asked "why?".
sometimes i need to spend time contemplating what choices i made that perhaps brought that situation about (or maybe just made it a little worse than it had to be), or reflect on the situation after the storm as passed....when i can finally see how God's hand was in it the whole time. even if i don't believe He brought the bad thing into my life, i can see how He protected me, led me, used me, strengthened me...and blessed me through it.
3) i also think that sometimes God wants us to ask "why?"....to use the brains He gave us to work our way toward the solution He always had in mind. i think "questioning with faith" is understandable to God. He knows we don't always...and sometimes may never...understand everything that happens in this life on earth....but He's given us an inquisitive mind for a reason.
this may seem silly....but i immediately thot how, as a mother of a young child...it was so tempting sometimes to just tell them the answer to a problem, riddle, etc. but i knew i wouldn't be helping them if i did; they needed to figure it out in a way they could understand...and learn for themselves.
I guess I don't think of these as "why" questions. I think of them as "how" or "what" questions. "What could I have done differently to bring You more glory, Lord?" "What should I be learning from this, Lord?". They are moving-forward-type questions, not "if only" type questions.
besiderself
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/7/2008 10:11:39 AM
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CoachSteve
Posts: 67
Joined: 5/26/2008
Status: offline
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this is something I am struggling with. I try to ask all the How do I get through, and what do you want me to do through this and learn from this and how is this going to glorify God? it is very hard, and there is a lot of prayer involved as well as reading of the Bible.
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/7/2008 11:24:15 AM
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sunshinesoprano
Posts: 1027
Joined: 4/12/2005
From: Georgia
Status: offline
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Well, if it's a sin to ask why, I've sinned more times than I can count.
I used to ask why I was born big, why I was given a gift of music, but great self-doubt making it difficult get on stage because I'd be afraid someone would judge me by my looks and not my musical abilities.
Sometimes I still do.
I've asked why I have never been asked out on a legitimate date that wasn't meant as a joke.
Why God made me the way He did.
Sometimes I still do.
I know the Bible tells us that the pot shouldn't question the potter. But the flesh naturally needs to know.
My personal stance on this is that God wants us to ask because He wants us to learn. If children knew all the answers, they wouldn't flood us with "Why"s.
We don't know why God does what He does, but I don't think He minds us asking. He wants us to approach Him and ask, because there is something He wants us to learn.
An example...January 17, 2005...my grandmother breathed her last breath as I sang on stage in Florida. I'd left town without calling her back about going to the funeral home for a friend's visitation who'd just passed away. I was busy getting ready to leave town to sing. I'd just been to her home the Tuesday before per her request to spend a little time with her.
I asked why I didn't get to say goodbye. Why I didn't get to be with her. Had I been home, she would have gone to church with me instead of being home with my uncle, and having a fight which triggered her heart attack.
After everything calmed down and the funeral was over, I asked why. She'd just about raised me. We spent every weekend together I didn't sing. Hazel and Heather were inseparable.
God revealed to me that it wasn't the way He wanted it. Granny died immediately...nothing could be done. Had I been in town, I wouldn't have been as strong as when I came in at midnight and said goodbye to the lifeless figure on the table, being kept alive long enough for me to see her and say goodbye. I might just have died with her that day.
The day she died I was doing what she'd been responsible for...getting me into the gospel music industry, being my greatest fan, a ruthless promoter, and my harshest critic. She wouldn't have ahad it any other way.
I was where I was supposed to be that day so I could hold it together, not personally murder my uncle who caused her death, and manage the funeral. So I could move on.
It's in the times that I question that I remember this and that it's okay to ask God why. He may not give you the answer immediately, but it brings us closer to Him, to learning His ways, and to show us that He is approachable, not just some floating head behind a curtain.
There's a reason I look like I do. Maybe so that when I sing I'm not a distraction....people don't focus on my looks, but on my gift and what I'm singing about....so that people who may not be the most beautiful aren't afraid to get on stage and use their gift. If I hadn't asked...I wouldn't have known.
_____________________________
Pure Heart-Fresh, Progressive Southern Gospel
Sing, laugh, love, PRAISE!
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/7/2008 12:29:09 PM
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Elena1030
Posts: 550
Joined: 6/21/2006
From: Music City, USA
Status: offline
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Oh, Lisa, what a timely thread! Thank you for starting it!
Hugs to everyone, first of all!!!!!!!
OK, so... I am in the moving-past-my-past stage of AfterTheCrush, as I call it. And the toughest thing for me is living fully in the present. (Well, that's pretty much my issue in a nutshell, anyway, no matter the arena of life!) I call up remembrances of ways I used to think, speak, and behave, especially in regard to this particular man, and I shake my head at myself. I say, "Elena, 5 years wasted! 5 years!"
I also lament about the lack of "potentials" around me. (And about the temptation to fill the empty "attention space" with the friendly attention of a guy who I've already ruled out for husband material for me.)
But like many of you, I also turn my mind to this: OK. Father, this beating myself up thing isn't healthy or good or Your plan for me, I know. So help me understand --- in the amounts of understanding You know I can handle at one time --- what I'm supposed to understand from what I did right and what I did wrong. Not in the sense that if I had done something differently that I would be with this man... but how did I respond in faith to You when I had to choose how to treat this man? how did I not obey? how did I operate with grace, compassion, and love for my brother in Christ? how did I miss the mark of being like You? Make me into a woman who truly is an image-bearer of Christ!
I love how Heather put this:
quote:
ORIGINAL: sunshinesoprano
It's in the times that I question that I remember this and that it's okay to ask God why. He may not give you the answer immediately, but {asking Him our questions} brings us closer to Him, to learning His ways, and to show us that He is approachable, not just some floating head behind a curtain.
Which brings me to the verse that has echoed in my mind as I've typed ......
Teach me Your ways, Lord, and I will live by Your truth. Psalm 86:11 (HCSB)*
* the focal verse for this year's VBS, for those of us who did Outrigger Island
_____________________________
"We're not odd, we're just over-expressive."—Helen in Howard's End
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/7/2008 2:04:48 PM
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John_O
Posts: 7635
Joined: 9/5/2006
Status: online
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Even during the worst of it (and the illness was actually worse than the grieving) the "why"s were always surrounded by the "how"s and the "please"s.
I think it's valid to ask God why. After all He designed us to make sense of our world and the "why" is part of that. But as others have said we cannot get caught up in the why.
He decides who lives and dies and there is nothing we can do about it.
Sometimes "because" is the only answer we can begin to understand to "why". When we learn to accept that life becomes easier.
_____________________________
Resistance is futile (if less than .25 ohms)
Psalms 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/7/2008 3:04:30 PM
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Bridgitt
Posts: 237
Joined: 6/18/2008
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Well, I know that God has a purpose in everything he allows or orchestrates. Sometimes He reveals that purpose to us, sometimes He doesn't. That's His prerogative.
We have to remember that it's all about Him and us having a deep relationship with Him. He is to increase in our life and we are to decrease. At times we understand, at others we don't. We just need to focus on the fact that He never makes mistakes and that He loves us so much that Jesus shed His blood for us.
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/7/2008 3:48:59 PM
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joy2give2u
Posts: 4931
Joined: 9/19/2006
From: Indiana
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Does anyone else love Habakkuk? I love him. You know why? Cause he always asked why.
And you know what happened when he asked why? God answered by showing him his plans......then as he waited patiently for the plan to be revealed more and more Habakkuk's relationship with the Lord grows as he begins to see past the present pain and questioning to the future glory of what God plans to do.
I love God's answer to Habakkuk's first questions of why....
1:5 Look at the nations and watch---and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told.
Isn't that so cool.......God answers his questions of why with a promise that what he is going to do is so utterly amazing Habakkuk would not believe it if he told him.......but then he goes ahead and tells him.
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Has anyone seen the movie Last Holiday? I love the church scene where she is singing Why Lord.....Why....Why......Why.
I can see Habakkuk doing that.....crying out ...why Lord why........
I love how Habakkuk doesn't back down from seeking an answer......he is not looking for answers as to what God is doing, though God shares with him nor is he looking for answers as to how God is going to do it though God shows him how........no he ask,"Why Lord?".
Then he goes and stands watch waiting to see what God will answer........
What does God tell him to do?
2:2 Then the Lord replied: "Write down the revelations and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.
2:3 For the revelations awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not be proved false, Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not be delayed.
What came when he asked why? Was it the answer to what and how? He gave him those answers but that is not what came when he asked Why........what came.....an renewed awe in the Lord.
God came........he came to the watch tower and he left a man no longer asking why......he left a man describing an encounter with the most High God.
3:3 God came from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran.
His glory covered the heavens and his praise filled the earth
3:4 His splendor was like the sunrise;
rays flashed from his hand,
where his power was hidden.
3:5 Plague went before him; pestilence followed his steps
3:6 He stood, and shook the earth;
He looked, and made the nations tremble.
The ancient mountains crumbled
and the age-old hills collapsed.
His ways are eternal.
And it goes on and on........
You see Habakkuk asked why and God's answer was here I am......experience me.
Through writing down what God was revealing to Habakkuk as to the why, Habakkuk found what he was really seeking.........an intimate encounter with the Lord Almighty.
I love the way the book ends.......
Habakkuk now knows what will happen........God has answered the how and what.......and look what he says........what I began to say when I asked God why?
3:17 Though the fig tree does not bud (I never get married)
and there are no grapes on the vine. (I never get rich)
and the fields produce no food( I never write a book)
through there is no sheep in the pen (I never have children)
and no cattle in the stalls(none of my dreams are fulfilled)
3:18 Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.
I ask God why.......why? Because every time I do and he answers, even if the answer makes my heart hurt or my knees weak, I encounter Him......and every time I rejoice and am filled with joy because he is my Savior.
Each time my faith is renewed and I am able to say as Habakkuk does in the last verse.
3:19 The Sovereign Lord is my strength: he makes my feet like feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights........
He does......when I ask why.......he gives me knew strength to face those things I have written down.....and some how, no matter how heavy the answer might be, he gives me a lightness to jump obstacles as though I am a deer and he allows me to soar to new heights..........that is why I ask why.
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God's Majesty seen through my eyes
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/31/2008 9:15:21 PM
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Psalms274
Posts: 944
Joined: 8/13/2005
From: Georgia
Status: offline
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quote:
'God doesn't always tell us why something is happening to us. Rather the question He loves to answer is,"What would you have me do here and now?"'
A tough question to ask, when humanly we want to weep, moan and stamp.
I still have to let go, but I'm getting there slowly but surely.
We always have the freedom to ask why ... look at David and even Job.
Psalms 51:6 "Surely you desire truth in the inner parts." along with all the why's he cries out to God when facing his toughest times ... yet you'll notice as David pours out his heart in absolutely transparency with the One Who made him, God then begins to pour into David His truth. Those emotional psalms that start out with why???? .... and end up with praises for his Maker in absolute awe of who He Is.
Job says in Job 23 "If only I knew where to find him; if only I could go to his dwelling! I would state my case before him and fill my mouth with arguments. I would find out what he would answer me, and consider what he would say."
Asking why is not a sin ... we are always free to ask. He may choose not to answer according to His infinite wisdom. It may be in our best interest not to know why ... or the why may be more than we can understand in out finite state. But we are always free to ask.
When my Dad and brother died a few years ago I not only asked why, I re-examined why I believed in a God that would allow such a heart wrenching event. Dad died after a diagnosis of cancer just 27 days after finding out about the disease, and Tim died from a pulmonary embolism on his way to say his last goodbyes to dad ... just three days before dad passed. I did not feel God's presence in that event and was surrounded by unbelievers ... it was a very dark time.
I openly told fellow Christians (and some were horrified by my statement) I will not believe in something just because I should ... I wanted truth. And I knew that I was in no danger in examining my faith and the One I had put my faith in ... because if He was really who He said He is, He could handle my doubts. And just like Job, I could not find Him anywhere ... but I can also say with Job later in chapter 23, "But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold."
So it's ok to question .... to get to the truth ... the real truth ... which answers the question, "what is the Character of the One who allowed this to happen?" When He lures you into the wilderness it is for the purpose of Him to woo you to the next level of intimacy. He promises that in "the Valley of Anchor (which can be translated as Trouble) you will find a door of hope."
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I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.
< Linus w/ a friends baby!
http://piswa.blogspot.com/
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/31/2008 9:41:40 PM
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John_O
Posts: 7635
Joined: 9/5/2006
Status: online
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Good post Psalms. Thank you
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Resistance is futile (if less than .25 ohms)
Psalms 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
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RE: Letting go; questioning God - 7/31/2008 11:47:11 PM
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