As I was waiting in line at WalMart one day, I looked over to see a boy of about 3, finish licking to the end of the counter by the conveyor belt. I silently cringed and was leaning over to tell him that was really gross when he stopped. His mother was oblivious to his antics as she helped her daughter with her coat. I turned to grab some things from my cart and as I turned back I witnessed the end of him licking his way back!
I moved to share with his mom what I had seen, then hesitated. Perhaps she was better off not knowing. It seemed I was just going to get him in trouble. By the looks of him that would not be the first time nor would it be his last.
This scene created opportunity to brighten the clerks day as we joked that perhaps he will obtain incredible immunity from that experience. I also prayed for his protection.
It struck me as I was moved to keep this boys mother in oblivion, perhaps that is what God thinks for us. We are better off not knowing what is going to happen to us, good or bad. We are better off choosing to trust Him in obedience than to get the full picture.
Just think for a moment how overwhelming it could be for us to know what is coming around the corner. We can never really prepare for things until we walk through them.
Two incidents in my own life came to mind as I contemplated this. One was my mothers' death and the other was our move to Regina.
Although my Mom had suffered with bipolar disorder many years and had previously tried to take her life; nothing could have prepared us for the finality of her success in this. I was better off not knowing the depths of grieving I would face.
When it started to become clear to us that we were to move to Regina, we began to prepare. There were many aspects we could plan, decisions to pray about and make. We looked at over 50 houses before we found ours. It took much longer to sell ours than we anticipated as the market slowed down. The move ended up looking nothing like we expected. And once everything was said and done I could not have prepared my heart for the impact of leaving family, friends and the city I had lived in for 25 years.
In hindsight, I was better off not knowing and in the process of trusting God in all of these things, my faith was deepened. I watched God be faithful at meeting us at every place, in ways I could not have imagined. Hebrews 11:1 says ' Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.'
I am thankful that God protects my heart and always has my best in mind, even when it doesn't feel like it. Sharon A. Hersh said it best in her book, Begin Again Believe Again,' Learning to trust in God's protection requires that we give up our image of what protection is. We tend to believe that protection means we will experience no harm or hardship. Trusting God's protection compels us to accept harm and hardship not only as a context in which God cares for us but also a place of protection. We must come to believe that God's care is more real than our pain and that His protection is active even when we can't see it.'
Jesus says in John 14:1 ' Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, trust also in me.'
Is there an area of your life that you need to trust God with today? Believe that He is working all the time, even if you can't see it.
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