Where Faith Fits In

The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of the law.  

Deuteronomy 29:29

Some of my favorite books are mysteries. Give me an Agatha Christie, and I’m happy. Guessing “who done it” is my idea of a good time!

On the other hand, dealing with life’s real mysteries isn’t so much fun.

I’m talking about the “Why God?” moments - the times when a tragedy happens or when God doesn’t answer our prayers the way want.

What‘s more, the Bible itself can be mysterious. While God has revealed a lot about himself and his ways, he hasn’t spelled out everything for us to know. Deuteronomy 29:29 says, The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us. Some eternal truths remain hidden.

I’ve come to recognize an opportunity presents itself when some sad, disastrous event occurs or when I don’t fully understand the Scripture. It’s a chance for me to glorify God by exercising faith in him.

B.B. McKinney (1886-1952) wrote “Have Faith in God.” In the hymn he referred to some of the challenges to our faith like loneliness, pain, and sorrow. Sooner or later all of us face those difficulties. I‘m sure McKinney had also.

Even so, he expressed absolute confidence in God. In the final verse he wrote:  

                        

                        Have faith in God ’tho all else fail about you;

                        Have faith in God, He provides for his own;

                        He cannot fail ’tho all kingdoms shall perish,

                        He rules, He reigns upon His throne.

I think McKinney was saying he didn’t need to understand everything in order to trust God. If God gave us all the answers, we wouldn’t get to exercise faith. That’s where faith fits in.

  

Father, we trust your wisdom, goodness, and sovereignty.

Carol