Strength for Today

Week Five: When You Don't Understand What God Is Doing 

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight." ~Proverbs 3:5–6 (NIV)

I like understanding things. I like knowing the plan. I like knowing where we're going, how we're getting there, how long it's going to take, and preferably what I should pack for the journey. Maybe you can relate. There's something comforting about knowing what comes next, but life doesn't always give us that luxury. Sometimes we find ourselves standing in the middle of circumstances we simply cannot make sense of.

We pray.
We search for answers.
We replay conversations.
We examine every possibility.
We ask God to show us what He's doing.

And sometimes He doesn't. At least not yet.

I've learned that one of the hardest parts of trusting God isn't always believing that He can do something. Sometimes the hardest part is trusting Him when we don't understand why He hasn't.

Why hasn't this prayer been answered?
Why did this door close?
Why did this happen?
Why is this taking so long?
Why did the plan change?
Why this road?
Why now?

There are moments when our hearts desperately want God to explain Himself, and yet Proverbs 3 gives us an instruction that can be incredibly difficult to live: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding."  I've read that verse countless times, maybe you have too. Lately, those words “lean not on your own understanding” have hit me differently. Why? Because that's exactly what I want to lean on.

My understanding.
My logic.
My timeline.
My interpretation of what should happen next.

I want the pieces to fit before I'm willing to feel peaceful about the picture. But you see, faith doesn't always work that way. Sometimes God asks us to trust Him before anything makes sense. 

We want explanations. God asks for trust. Think about how limited our perspective really is.

We see today - God sees tomorrow.
We see the closed door - God sees what was behind it.
We see the delay - God sees what He's preparing.
We see the disappointment - God sees the direction our lives would have taken if everything had gone according to our plans.
We see one piece - God sees the entire picture.

Perhaps that's why Scripture doesn't tell us: "Understand the Lord with all your heart." It says: Trust Him. There is such a difference.

Understanding says: I'll have peace when this makes sense. Trust says: I can have peace because I know Who holds what I cannot understand.
Understanding demands answers. Trust rests in character.
Understanding asks: "God, what are You doing?" Trust eventually learns to say: "God, I don't know what You're doing, but I know who You are."

Maybe that's one of the deepest places faith can take us.

God is not threatened by our questions. I think sometimes Christians are afraid to admit that they have questions. We worry that asking why means our faith isn't strong enough; but Scripture is filled with people asking God difficult questions. David asked them. Habakkuk asked them. Job certainly asked them. Even Jesus cried from the cross: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" God is not intimidated by an honest heart. You can bring Him your confusion. Your disappointment. Your frustration. Your questions. You can say: Lord, I don't understand, and still trust Him.

Faith doesn't require pretending that something doesn't hurt. Faith doesn't require calling something good when it feels devastating; and faith certainly doesn't require having every answer. Sometimes faith is simply saying: “I don't understand this, God. But I'm choosing not to let what I don't understand change what I know to be true about You.” That is a very different kind of faith. A faith that has been tested. A faith with roots. 

Remember what you already know

When I don't understand what God is doing, I've found that it helps to stop asking only: "What is God doing?" Instead start asking: "What do I already know about God?"

I know He is faithful.
I know He is good.
I know He loves His children.
I know He hears prayer.
I know He is near to the brokenhearted.
I know His grace is sufficient.
I know His mercies are new every morning.
I know nothing surprises Him.
I know He has been faithful before.

Those truths become anchors when everything else feels uncertain.

Because circumstances change. Feelings change. Plans change. People change. But the character of God does not.

Maybe you're standing in the middle of a story you cannot understand yet. 

Perhaps something happened this year that still doesn't make sense.
Maybe you're facing a decision and desperately asking God for direction.
Maybe you're grieving something you thought would turn out differently.
Maybe you believed a door would open and instead watched it close.
Maybe you're still waiting for the answer to a prayer you've prayed more times than you can count.
Perhaps you've been thinking: If God would just tell me why, maybe I could handle this better. 

Friend... maybe He will.

There are things we eventually understand when we look backward; but there may also be things we never completely understand on this side of eternity. That is where trust becomes precious, because eventually faith has to decide: Is God's character enough for me when His explanation doesn't come? That's not an easy question. I'm still learning to answer it myself. I'm discovering that peace doesn't always arrive when God gives us an explanation, but that sometimes peace arrives when we finally stop demanding one. When we open our hands and say: Lord, I don't understand this chapter, but I trust the Author. Look back before you look forward. If trusting Him today feels difficult, look backward for a moment.

Remember the prayers He answered.
Remember the doors He opened.
Remember the times He provided when you couldn't see how things would work out.
Remember the strength that arrived on the day you needed it.
Remember the things you once worried about that somehow became part of your testimony.
Remember the seasons you thought would break you, but God carried you through.

His past faithfulness becomes evidence for today's uncertainty.

You don't need to know everything God is doing to know that He can be trusted.
You don't need the whole map.
You don't need tomorrow's answers today.

Sometimes you just need enough light for the next step, and enough faith to take it.

This Week's Reflection

What are you trying desperately to understand right now? A situation? A delay? A closed door? Someone else's decision? An unanswered prayer? 

Take a moment and honestly tell God: “Lord, I don't understand this.” Then underneath it, write down three things you do know about Him.

Maybe:
You are faithful.
You are with me.
You love me.

Let what you know about God's character become louder than what you don't know about your circumstances, and then pray: “Lord, help me trust You with the parts I cannot understand.”

A Prayer

Heavenly Father,

There are things in our lives today that we simply don't understand. There are prayers we thought You would have answered differently. Doors we thought would open. Plans we thought would work. Timelines we thought would be shorter, and questions we have carried quietly in our hearts. Thank You that we don't have to hide those questions from You, You already know them.

Lord, when we cannot understand Your ways, help us remember Your character. When our minds race looking for explanations, quiet our hearts. When we are tempted to believe that our unanswered questions mean You have abandoned us, remind us of every place You have already been faithful.

Teach us to trust You before the explanation comes. Help us loosen our grip on our timelines, our expectations, and our need to understand everything. Give us wisdom for the things You want us to act upon, patience for the things You ask us to wait for, and peace for the things we simply need to place into Your hands.

Father, for the person reading this who is carrying a question that hurts, draw especially near today. Remind them that they are seen, they are heard, they are loved, and they are not walking through this uncertainty alone.

We may not understand this chapter, but we trust the One writing the story.

In Jesus' name,
Amen

A Blessing for Your Week

May God give you peace where you don't have answers,
Faith where you cannot see the way forward,
Wisdom for the next step,
And grace to leave tomorrow in His hands.

When questions rise, may His character become your anchor.
When fear whispers, may His past faithfulness remind you that He has never stopped being God.
And when you cannot understand the story unfolding before you, may you find rest in this truth: You don't have to understand the plan to trust the One who holds it.

May you find strength for today, and trust Him with tomorrow.

Until next Tuesday...

With grace, coffee & leggings,
☕ZQueenBee