This post is a part of my series of once weekly devotionals called Faith for Thought. Bookmark the homepage for Faith for Thought here to return to it for the weekly update on Thursday!
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Matthew 16:21-23
21 From then on Jesus began to tell his disciples plainly that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, and that he would suffer many terrible things at the hands of the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but on the third day he would be raised from the dead.
22 But Peter took him aside and began to reprimand him for saying such things. “Heaven forbid, Lord,” he said. “This will never happen to you!”
23 Jesus turned to Peter and said, “Get away from me, Satan! You are a dangerous trap to me. You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s.”
Matthew 16:21-23, NLT
Devotion
In the last month, I’ve known two people who have passed away suddenly and completely unexpectedly. Both were fathers of 3, one in his early 60s and one in his early 40s. One will never have the chance to see his grandchildren grow up; one, his own children.
When unexpected, horrifying things happen, it makes me want to look up to heaven and ask God what He’s thinking. It makes me wonder how such a compassionate and loving God can seriously allow this heartbreak and tragedy into the lives of His own people.
It tempts me to think that He’s either not as loving as I think, or He’s not as in control as I think. Something’s gotta give, because how could this possibly be a part of His plan?
But I remind myself that I am seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s. I can’t see the whole picture; my story is not over yet.
Consider for a moment your favorite inspirational story — think The Blind Side, Freedom Writers, and The Pursuit of Happyness. We watch these inspirational stories and love them because we already know how they will end. Terrible and tragic things happen in the best inspirational movies, but we have a different point of view. We know that the story is not over yet, and better yet, we know that the story will have a great ending.
God knows the ending of our stories too, and He tells us that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. (Romans 8:18) We just can’t see it yet.
Action Steps
Listen to the song Faithful God by I Am They. When terrible things happen, remind yourself that your story isn’t over yet. You’re seeing things merely from a human point of view.
