Great Words of Comfort
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Great Words of Comfort
Let God be God and trust him
A recurring phrase haunts memories of my childhood. Growing up, I had a tendency to want to do what displeased my parents, sometimes to the point of their exasperation. Whether I was trying for a real answer or just being annoying, I cannot remember, but I remember the response to my incessant whiney “why…?”
Because I said so.
When I became a stepmom, I occasionally wanted to use that same phrase. But I remembered how annoying it was, so I made an effort to explain to my pre-young man why certain things were the way they were, especially regarding house rules.
When the dark times hit and our world tilted on its axis, we directed our incessant whine of “why…?” toward God.
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. (Isaiah 55:8, NIV)
I think this is God’s way of saying, “because I said so.”
How many people experience tragedy, blame God because they don’t get what they want out of life, and then reject him because our little human brains cannot understand his ways?
I am guilty of this.
I want to say, “but God, why do I have to go through another round of yuck, haven’t I proven myself to you?”
As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:9, NIV)
He reminds me of who he is.
God created…everything.
He created everything in a way humans cannot understand, and he reminds us to consider that he made the heavens in such a way we will never comprehend.
This concept hit home as I read the first part of Eric Metaxas’ book “Is Atheism Dead?” He summarizes the science of the miracles of “the heavens” God created. We never hear about it, though, because it supports the presence of God, and “science” doesn’t like that.
A couple of tidbits from the book that blew my mind:
The Earth is so perfectly calibrated that one bit larger or smaller, one bit closer or further away from the sun or moon, an itty bitty change in the planet’s exact position in the universe, and the composition of other planets — all work together for life to occur. Any slight deviation, and I mean slight, and life cannot exist.
Scientists have supporting evidence that the Big Bang actually happened because they can calculate when it started. If they know when it started, that means there was a time of nothingness. It also means something or someone initiated the Big Bang. Come on y’all, just say it. God did!
The dance of sun and water is also confounding. The sun’s light spectrum is huge, and we only see a sliver of it in the form of sunlight. That sunlight contains 70% of the sun’s energy, which life needs. Water, on the other hand, can absorb all of the sun’s spectrum except for sunlight. Sunlight is the only part of the sun’s gigantic spectrum that passes through water, which is vital for life.
The human cell is such a complex and dynamic “machine” that scientists cannot replicate even its smallest components.
The list goes on, and the book describes more of these miracles of beyond-human calibration that inspire awe. In other words, Metaxas makes the case that the more science uncovers about the universe, the Earth, and life itself, the more the evidence points to God.
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
(Isaiah 55:8–9, NIV)
The Oklahoma sky transforms from day to night in brilliant color.
The birds and crickets chime into their perfectly-timed symphony.
Through night vision, the night sky reveals layers upon layers of stars that look like God threw a glitter party.
The lone star shoots across the sky.
The deer come out for tree munchies around the same time every night.
The storm clouds roll in from the southwest, high as the eye can see, putting fear in the hearts of mortals, while lightning cracks to the ground and thunder shakes the earth.
The God I adore created these things, and he created us. I am humbled by his love for us. He has a whole universe to manage, and in the grand scheme of things, we are small.
We cannot know God’s thoughts, so if we trust him, we need to trust him with everything.
We need the faith of a child.
We need to understand that in this world, we will have trials.
We need to accept that trials build character, perseverance, humility, faith, and complete reliance on God.
We will never, ever, ever understand the ways of God, and that’s just the way it is.
Because He said so.