Will you fully trust and follow the God you don’t understand and will never understand?
“at that time the Lord spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, “Go, and loose the sackcloth from your waist and take off your sandals from your feet,” and he did so, walking naked and barefoot.
Then the Lord said, “As my servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot for three years as a sign and a portent against Egypt and Cush, so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptian captives and the Cushite exiles, both the young and the old, naked and barefoot, with buttocks uncovered, the nakedness of Egypt.” Isaiah 20:2-4
I just read the above verses and I thought to my self, if I heard a voice telling me to be naked and barefoot, would I truly believe that the voice is the Lord’s? Would you?
This is why it is so important to really know the voice of the Lord, because it’s easy to brush off the above words because they don’t seem “logical”. But God is Sovereign and times and times again He will use ways that don’t make “sense” to us.
So I will ask again, will you fully trust and follow the God you don’t understand and will never understand?
Of course, this question is very much for me; because right in this moment if I had heard those words, I know how easy it would be for me to think, Gisèle, those words are from your mind playing a trick on you. Please read and meditate on the words of the apostle Paul below from his first letter to the Corinthians chapter 1, verse 18 to 25.
Christ the Wisdom and Power of God
“For the word of the Cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning, I will thwart.”
Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”
This is worth repeating: For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
Times and times again, God has used ways that I don’t fully understand and that I will never understand. And the question for all of us is: would we truly want a God we can understand? Would we truly want a God who has to explain Himself to us? God alone is forever Sovereign and all powerful. Times and times again, His ways will confound us. And this should teach us deep, deep humility. Why? Because we will not always understand what the Lord is doing in our lives. I am in a season of my life where I don’t want to talk about “what’s going on in my life” (I will explain why below). As Christians, we love this question, “so, what’s the Lord been doing in your life?” And I know we mean well when we ask that question; I know I have asked that question sincerely wanting to know what God has been doing in a friend’s life.
But something dawned on me the other day, in any given season that I am in, how can I really know what God is truly doing?
I don’t know about you, but most times I get to better understand not fully know (because the truth of the matter is we will never fully know what God is doing) what “God is doing” only after I’m out of any given season. The perfect example of this is Job. For 37 chapters Job and his friends are going back and forth on what “God is doing” in Job’s life and they all fail miserably to know let alone understand what God is doing. Please pay attention to Job’s words in Job chapter 42 verse 1 to 3.
“Then Job answered the Lord and said:
“I know that You can do everything,
And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You.
You asked, ‘who is this who hides counsel without
Knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.”
The thought of “how can I really know what God is doing?” came to me after I got convicted that I have uttered what I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. (Job 42:3) I felt convicted that I had shared with friends what I did not understand about what God was really doing in my life. And in His perfect wisdom, I may not understand until later on.
“Sometimes a trial comes along, and we run to the Bible, pull out a quote and say, “According to this Scripture right here, we got it.” We have certain confidence in ourselves. We think we know exactly what is going on. The problem is that we do not know what is happening, and so God will deal with our self-trust. God certainly knows our feelings. He knows we are so proud of the way we rightly divide the word of truth and that we can disjoint a text like a butcher getting a chicken ready for the barbecue. With words all carefully laid out and knowing just where to put your finger on this or just where to put your finger on that, you are too smart for God to bless you. You know too much. You can identify everything, but the dear heavenly Father knows you do not really know much at all. He lets things happen to you until you recognize that you do not know what is happening. Your friends do not know what is going on either. And when you go to somebody you feel you can trust, that person will not be able to help you either. That is actually good news.” The Crucified Life by A.W Tozer
God, please forgive me for uttering what I did not understand. Lord, I pray, “set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips!” (Psalm 141: 3)
Be quiet and be still before the Lord
“My soul, wait patiently for God alone,
For my expectation is from Him.
He only is my rock and my salvation;
He is my defense;
I shall not be moved.
In God is my salvation and my glory;
The rock of my strength,
And my refuge, is in God.
Trust in Him at all times, you people’
Pour out your heart before Him;
God is a refuge for us.” Psalm 62:5-8
The themes of quietness and stillness have been reoccurring to me over and over again since 2019 started.
The below verses are the verses that have been lingering long in my heart.
“For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One
of Israel
“In returning and rest you shall be saved;
In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.” Isaiah 30:15
“Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him…” Psalm 37:7
“….Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still.” Psalm 4:4
Lord, I pray again, “set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips!” (Psalm 141: 3)
Father, as I learn to be quiet and still in Your presence, I pray that I wait patiently for You. God, You see my heart, I desire to stop uttering what I don’t understand. Teach me how to answer friends and loved ones when they ask, “so, what’s the Lord been doing in your life.” You alone fully know and understand what You are doing in my life. Thank you for Your mighty ways, for they have taught me humility. Your power has mercifully quieted and stilled my soul. May I forever be wrapped in Your word and truth, it’s in the precious and holy name of Jesus’ I pray and I believe, Amen!
My soul waits for the Lord
“Out of the depths I have cried to You, O Lord;
Lord, hear my voice!
Let Your ears be attentive
To the voice of my supplications.
If You, Lord, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?
But there is forgiveness with You,
That You may be feared.
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
And in His word I do hope.
My soul waits for the Lord
More than those who watch for the morning-
Yes, more than those who watch for the morning.
O Israel, hope in the Lord;
For with the Lord there is mercy,
And with Him is abundant redemption.
And He redeem Israel
From all his iniquities.” Psalm 130:1-8
I first heard the below song from Psalm 130 couple days ago and it’s been on replay since then. May your heart be tremendously blessed and encouraged by it.