As God’s people, and especially as Christians, one question we often ask ourselves is, “How do we find the good in our tragedies, the thankfulness in our burdens, and happiness in our sorrows.” Our problem is that we become to focused on ourselves. In April of 2009, my 92 year old mother slumped in her dining room chair and fell to the floor. In doing so, she broke her hip. I was called and went to the hospital. The hip ball was screwed together the next day and she healed slowly.
In 1st Thessalonians 5:16-21 we read:
16Rejoice evermore. 17Pray without ceasing. 18In everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 19Quench not the Spirit. 20Despise not prophesying. 21Prove all things; hold fast to that which is good.” (KJV)
Sometimes it is difficult for us to be thankful in all things. But, if we try, even in tragedy we can certainly find some good, maybe extraordinary good, and in that be thankful. The “good” that came from mother’s fall was the first day when I was leaving the hospital. A lady was just barely in front of me as we left the emergency room. Something, nudged me to speed up abreast to her side. Something told me that this is where God wanted me in this, His time. Being continuously in a thankful attitude in all our circumstances, we are prepared to help others according to our talents and gifts.
She was crying.
"What's the matter?"
To a total stranger, she opened up to me and told me of a family friend, a six year old boy whose best friend was her son's friend. This young man was laying in the pediatric wing deathly sick, getting weaker and weaker, and the doctors did not have a clue to the boy’s illness. "He has rashes, sores, the illness saps his strength, and is getting progressively worse," she said. It was easy to see why she was distraught and in pain.
I did the customary kindness, "I am so sorry, what is the boy's first name?”
When she told me "Ethan", I responded, "I will pray for Ethan," and that started her opening up to me even more. As she talked about Ethan and how he was a close friend of the family, it was easy to feel the love she had for him. I was amazed she started giving me all the details she spoke, as she continued to cry.
It was at this point the conversation turned theological. She said, "Sometimes, it is hard to understand the will of God, I believe that some how this is God's will, but I just do not understand." That was an opening to continue the conversation.
"Do you have a church?" She responded, "Hickory Grove Baptist Church in Charlotte." Understanding a little of the basis of her beliefs made it easy to start talking about what I feel is the best guide and model of understanding The Will of God. In midst of war in England, 1943, Leslie Weatherhead gave five sermons to his church in London concerning The Will of God. In the midst of horrible war, he explained that he believed there were three fundamental concepts wrapped in the words "The Will of God".
Mr Weatherhead defines the three parts of this statement:
The Circumstantial Will of God
The Intentional Will of God
The Ultimate Will of God.
As the lady and I talked, I quickly explained the Intentional and Ultimate Will of God which is more easily understood; but, then focused on the Circumstantial Will of God. Not understanding the Circumstantial Will is what had her questioning God’s Will.
Mr. Weatherhead in his book, "The Will of God", explains that the Circumstantial Will of God that often seems to conflict with the Intentional and Ultimate Will. God does not want his children to be sick, it is not His intention or ultimate will for this and other bad things to happen; and by the logic of being the Good Parent, he does not directly and purposely cause bad things to happen to people. We may be tested by the devil, but are always loved by God.
Within the confines of the Circumstantial Will of God, Weatherhead explains that God set up the physical rules of the universe, and we are still trying to determine what those rules are. The rules are constant as God created the rules, but we as humans can take a long time to learn what they are.
Humanity tends to violate those rules as we go about our daily lives and quite often unknowingly. We find ourselves driving to an event, we realize that we will be late, and what do many people do, speed up, breaking man's and God's laws. And when someone wraps their car around a pole, some will say, it must be God's Will. This does a disservice to God. It is God’s Intentional Will not to drive so fast we lose control of our car. However, it is God’s Circumstantial Will that if we drive too fast for conditions, we can lose our way and tragedy will occur.
While it is true that speeding and bad accidents will hurt and kill people; that is not what God intends for us in our life. The rules are in place. Without going into the physics of speed, momentum, and reactions to it, suffice it is to say, speed hurts and kills. We find ourselves in events we do not want to happen because of wanting to be on time, selfishness, wanting to make life easy, and wanting to take the cheap way out.
© lonnie coggins
==============================
Sharing these messages
You are welcome to share these messages. You can send the links to your friends, copy and insert the link on FB or Christian.com or you can print the message and share it with your friends.
You can print the message including this sharing message only for your friends and for non-profit. You will have to copy and paste the message to a word processing document. After you copy and paste add the following at the end of the message:
© Lonnie Coggins
ldcoggins@gmail.com
If you desire to use any of these messages in a For-Profit manner you must contact me (email) for permission. Typically, I will most likely give permission.
Please email me if you find any broken links in this message.
lonnie
Publication 0089
Publication 0089
No comments:
Post a Comment