God Knows

Like the Psalmist, we have no idea when this pandemic will be over.  We get some signs of improvement – little by little our country, our world, is opening up – and then there’s an increase of new Covid19 cases and things seem to shut down again – “none of us knows how long this will be.”  Fortunately, God knows.

Yet, like so many of the Psalms, I find myself asking God, “How long?  When will this all be over?”  If I’m honest, it’s not a humble or innocent question.  I’m basically whining and complaining out of frustration.  It’s like children in the back seat of the car on a long trip: “When will we get there?”  Or, “How much longer?”  My typical response was usually, “We’re closer now than we were before”.  Out of spite, I might say, “Five more minutes”.  I learned while in foreign countries that “five minutes” can really mean three hours.  

Recently, while I was whining and complaining to God, the conversation went like this:

He was basically saying, “Trust me.  I got this.”  Not the answer I was looking for.  God was kinda saying, “You’re closer now than before”.  Or, actually, He’s saying this will all be over in “five minutes”.  Remember, “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day." (2 Peter 3.8)  

The words of Jeremiah 29.11 were given to the Israelites while they were in exile, living away from Jerusalem, captives in Babylon.  The Lord told them that they would be there for 70 years.  (That was a literal 70 years – not like “five minutes.”)  During those 70 years God told them, “Plant gardens, build homes, have children – multiply and increase.”  It wasn’t about getting comfortable.  It was about accepting their lot in life.  It was about carrying on their lives – not trying to figure out their predicament, not dwelling on their pain.  Instead, they were to seek God with all their heart, and they were to “seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile.” (v. 7)  In other words, while in exile, while waiting for it to all be over, they were to trust God’s plans for the future as they then Loved God and Loved Others.  

While we may be “LIVING ON PAUSE”, I am reminded that we still need to be “LIVING ON PURPOSE”.  Let’s not get comfortable, accept life as it is, but seek God’s greater purpose.  Seek the welfare of our city and our neighborhoods.  Be a light – pray for God to heal our land.