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Many Christians have experienced tough times. Perhaps they've
just been diagnosed with a chronic illness, or a family member
is dying, or they’ve suddenly lost a job, or are feeling like their
life is in limbo, or whatever else; when another well-meaning
Christian puts a hand on their shoulder and says with
conviction, “Take heart. God is in control.”
How true is that statement, really? The Bible seems to tell
conflicting tales. The Israelites went through extraordinary
periods of being in God’s grace and then out of it; from
persecution to exile, to return to God’s promise and back again,
and the Old Testament blames this cycle not on God’s lack of
power, but on the fickle hearts of the Israelites themselves.
Thus causing Christians in this day and age to often blame the
struggles we face on either our own fickleness or the sins of our
forefathers.
Is that fair?
The New Testament also tells the story of the man who was
blind from birth. When asked whose sin resulted in his
blindness, Christ replied that it was so that God’s glory could
be shown. Which causes modern Christians to ask, “am I being
tried for my sins, or is this simply to show God’s glory?”
Is THAT fair?
There’s also the fallen nature of our world. In the Old
Testament, when Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden,
not only were they and their offspring cursed, but the labor of
their hands and the fruit of the earth, and even the insects and
animals were cursed. Which causes Christians to ask, “am I
simply a victim of the fallen nature of this planet?”
What is true? Is God in control, and do we shun His control
with our own hard hearts? Is He in control and allowing us to
suffer, to later demonstrate His glory? Is the world simply still
under the curse of sin and death, and we are victims of it?
But, wait… we have Christ, right? Which means the curse is
broken, isn’t it? Well, it may be broken for those who believe
in Christ, but not for the entire planet, is that right? God’s
Kingdom hasn’t come, has it?
But we are here, we are faithful, we are bringing the
Kingdom… so isn’t God in control?
The logic circles onward and the logic circles inward. Like at
the end of C.S. Lewis’s, The Last Battle, we must answer the
call to follow further up and further in.
All I know is that I trust my own heart and life are in God’s
hands, and He is as in control of my own faith as much as I will
allow Him to be. And I do have hope, as foolish and pointless
as it may be, I still have hope. I believe that I will see God’s
love in my life, I believe that as bleak and hopeless as it all may
seem, I will experience joy. I believe it because I have seen
God’s faithfulness in my own life. Not that my life has been
“blessed” or “fortuitous” - far from it. But has God been there?
To me, He has, without a doubt. Was He in Control? I don’t
know.
But He was there.
So next time you feel the urge to extend a hand of comfort,
next time you hear the religious conviction tone in your voice,
pause for a moment and choose your words with care. Perhaps
we shouldn’t throw out the words “God is in control” so
carelessly. Instead, choose to say,
“God is with you. So am I.”
June 2008
| Is God in Control? Lindsey Kay |
photo by Lydia Selk About the Still Life Photos in this Issue Lydia Selk lives in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Sheis an artist and photographer who took the time to look for beauty and says that now beauty is all she can see. |
| email this writer at: lindseykay@harlotssauce.com |
