Simplicity and Understanding
We humans have a need to know everything. On the highway and traffic is going slower than normal? We need to know what the cause is. Is there construction? An accident? What? In the house, if we’re doing the dishes, watching our favorite TV show, or working on a project and we hear the sound of screeching tires followed by a loud “BANG!,” we run to every window in our house to see if we can see anything outside. We need to know what that sound was, and we need to know what happened.
When things happen in life we always try to find the answer. We need to know why. Then when we start to follow God, when events happen we always try to use our human minds to figure out what Gods big plan is. Why does God do what He does? Who is God? What is God? Why does God wake me up every night at 2:00 am, but He lets that guy sleep like a baby for nine hours straight?
Walking and living for God is not much different than “going with the flow.” People get a word from God or see what God is doing and, instead of going with the flow, they try to figure out why and what and how come and what the meaning is. We often forget that we are not God. God is God, and He knows why! As a human I can’t possibly begin to comprehend God’s thought process. Why would He make anchovies, for instance? Or why would He raise judge after judge to save the Israelites after they repeatedly disobeyed and turned from Him? Even while reading how he raised the first three I said to myself, “Forget that!” If it were me, I would have left them alone after the first two! I might even have zapped a few of them with lightning.
This topic brings me back to a time when I was studying for a math test with a friend of mine. As he explained the formula and equation to me I asked, “Why?” Then he explained the formula to me again, and I asked, “But why?” He explained it in even more detail. I looked at him for a couple seconds and then said, “Yes, but why does that happen?” Getting a little frustrated with, me he said “It doesn’t matter why, that’s just how it is.” So I simplified my approach and just did what I was supposed to without trying to figure out why, and the answer came effortlessly — the rest of the studying was a breeze.
The same can be said with walking or following God, often times things happen, some people get healed, some don’t, some followers of God get words of wisdom or visions while others get to talk about him and spread the seeds, that’s just how it is.
Our jobs are not to understand, but to follow God with faith. Why does God do what he does? Because that’s how God does it. Why did God heal one person and not the other? Because that’s how He wants it. Why can that person lay hands on people and God heals them, while another’s job is to simply witness to people? Only God knows how it will fit into the big picture. Understanding is great, but simplicity is better.
If God says jump, I say “How high?” If God says “Lay your hand on that person,” I respond “Head or back?” I don’t need to know the reasons behind it or what it will accomplish; I only need to keep in mind that God knows the purpose, and needs me to simply act. My job is not to understand, but simply to be a tool in his hands. He may use me to bang in a nail or screw in a screw, but I don’t know what each individual screw or nail is going to accomplish. I just know that He has the blueprints and He knows what the outcome will be.
To do what He asks without trying to figure out the reasoning behind it or what the outcome will be is true faith. Faith is what Christianity is based on and faith keeps the gears turning, while simplicity lubricates the gears and causes them to turn smoothly. I prefer my gears to turn smoothly instead of them grinding, and for some reason I think God does too.
You got it! I like your conclusion that, “God is God, and He knows why!” Your Math analogy was great too. Good work.