Whatever it takes…

The Lord spoke to Manasseh and to his people, but they paid no attention. Therefore the Lord brought upon them the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria, who captured Manasseh with hooks and bound him with chains of bronze and brought him to Babylon. And when he was in distress, he entreated the favor of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. He prayed to him, and God was moved by his entreaty and heard his plea and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God. (2 Chronicles 33:10–13)

Yesterday two Christian friends complained they had no patience. I said, “The Bible says we get patience through tribulation so we spend much of our lives trying to avoid trials and then complain we have no patience.” Both of them laughed at that truth.

Manasseh and his people didn’t pay attention to God so he put him in bondage and distress — tribulation. He humbled himself and confessed as Hezekiah had done before him (2 Chronicles 32:6) and he was restored. Even more, he knew God.

Much of my grumbling is the result of forgetting who God is, and forgetting that He wants the best for me. If a trial comes, I want to fix I, revealing that my doubt and impatience are based on forgetting that He is for me, not against me, even in trials.

Another friend was complaining about her lot in life. She always complains. She fails to see how God can use all things that happen to her for her good. Also, she doesn’t realize that if she, and all of us, got what we deserved for our sin and self-centeredness, our lives would be far worse.

A small thing happened this morning. I wanted to be here in the word before a certain time, and was just about to do that when someone interrupted my plan and we looked for a lost item for several minutes. Patience required. I missed my self-imposed deadline. Since I believe God is in the details and has reasons for every trial, big or small, it is not a surprise to be reminded to listen, do what He says, don’t grumble about not getting my i-wants, and to be glad to have a tiny patience-builder. It could have been much greater. 

This is why this blog is called “Practical Faith.” Trusting God is for everyday events. He wants me to stay calm with too many emails, the phone ringing when I am in the shower, and all other interruptions seen as opportunities, and seeing bigger stuff like bad news on the telly or government leaders making what looks like big mistakes is part of His plan.

Manasseh experienced the reality that God is in charge. If this man would not listen, God knew how to get his attention and even how to change his life. It was through an extreme trial and answered prayer that he knew that the Lord was God.

Jesus, You walk with me every day and in every circumstance. You want me to be like You and as I study Your word and experience Your kindness and answers to my prayers, both big and small, You show me over and over that You are God and You are making my faith in You practical for all of life. What a wonder each day to know You deeper!  

 

My boasting vs. “Only God”

 

When prayer goes unanswered for a long time, I’m tempted to take matters into my own hands. Today’s devotional illustrates the folly of doing that with the story of Abraham. God promised to bless him and make a great nation of him, but his wife was barren. Eventually, both of them aged to the point that child-bearing was humanly impossible. 

But before that, Abraham became desperate and decides to bring about God’s promised Son without supernatural intervention. He has sex with Hagar, his wife’s handmaid. The result is not a “child of promise” but a “child of the flesh,” Ishmael.

But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring. (Romans 9:6–8)

For anyone who knows the story, God “brought him outside and said, ‘Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.’ Then he said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’ And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:5–6)

Piper likens this to a pastor who hears God promise to bless his ministry, but the prayer goes unanswered. So the pastor does as Abraham did by taking matters into his own hands and using mere human devices to attract people without the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit. It might work, but the church will be filled with children of the flesh, not children of God.

For me, I liken this to any kind of ‘walking in the flesh’ to make things happen, things that I’ve prayed about for many years. My results might ‘look good’ but unless God does the work, my efforts will produce ‘Ismaels’ and not ‘Isaacs’ who could be called barren fruit as well, totally unlike those who are children of the promise and the work of the Holy Spirit.

Human manipulation might have some sort of success, but this is nothing like the work of the Holy Spirit in my life and in the lives of those people that I pray for. Over the years. I can think of dozens of examples, both positive and negative.

The human tendency to ‘do it my way’ can be so strong that it appears to be a God-thing, or an answer to prayer, or even obedience. However, God knows the heart and can keep His people from doing the human thing. For example, my sister was driving to visit an uncle in the hospital. She was determined to tell him about Jesus, but asked God, “If this is not the right time, turn me around.” At that moment, she hit a patch of ice, her car did a spin and she would up in the ditch facing the other direction! She went home, made the visit the next day, and our uncle invited Jesus into his life. He died two weeks later.

PRAY: Just as You saved my sister from trying a DIY action, be as clear with me. When I am tempted to use any of my own methods, or manipulation, or timing to control someone else, turn me around too — before I wind up with a result like Ismael, who became the father of Israel’s enemies even to this day. The consequences of walking in the flesh can be “successful” but to what price? That kind of success is pathetic compared to Your answers to prayer, and even to the patience and faith You build in me as I wait for them. Far better to say “only God” than to boast “Look what I did.”