When you pray, what might be the concept of the God to whom you pray? Is he an austere God, a Santa Claus type God who gives you good gifts, or a distant God who you are not sure even hears your prayer? Or, is He a sovereign God who is not manipulated by the words, volume or posture you use when you pray?
Who or what has shaped the image of God in your mind? Was it what you read in a book or two or heard in a sermon or from a parent or friend? Or, was it formed after reading not a verse in the Bible but the whole Bible? Most often your understanding, and therefore expectations, were shaped by someone who modeled God in your life such as a Father or minister whom you highly revered. Another way our concept of God may be shaped is by our own imagination—perhaps a new and improved “Christ” relevant to our self-centered times. However, Luke wrote, …we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man (Acts 17:29, ESV).
The Bible God cannot be shaped by one or two verses but by all that the Bible tells us about God and what He does. We love the famous verse, And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them (Romans 8:28, NLT2). Our first response is to interpret the word “good” to mean something in our current day that is pleasant, understandable, or that makes us look good. But what is “good” may not always feel good at the moment.
When King Solomon died, his son Rehoboam became king of the 12 tribes of Israel. Through some very interesting and insightful circumstances, 10 of the 12 tribes declared their independence splitting God’s chosen people. Rehoboam could not allow God’s people to be divided, so he prepared his army to force them back under his rule. About that time, God sent a prophet who said to Rehoboam, ‘This is what the LORD says: Do not fight against your relatives, the Israelites. Go back home, for what has happened is my doing!’” So they obeyed the message of the LORD and went home, as the LORD had commanded (1 Kings 12:24, NLT2). What?!! How can God do something so deplorable as that?? I highly suspect Rehoboam probably imagined such a thing would surely be contrary to His will. He was noble enough to deny his logic and obey God!
When painful things come into our lives, based on our limited image of God we quickly say, “How could a good and loving God do that?” and then either get mad at Satan or at God for allowing it to happen. Could there be another alternative? Could it be the result of a foolish decision we made, truly a Satanic attack, or could it actually be God orchestrating it for “good” reasons He alone can understand at that moment in time? How big is your God? Is He big enough to have greater plans than we can imagine? …plans that take us through Gethsemane and Calvary before we experience our Resurrection moment? Indeed, we most certainly must try to rightly discern what may be behind our experiences. However, we must never forget: we will never be able to understand our God who created all that there is, loves us more than we can comprehend and has plans that are beyond our imagination. He asks us to trust Him and His goodness—even when we don’t understand!! Read God’s Word again to discover just how BIG the Bible God really is. When He reveals His Greatness to you, it will comfort your heart and help you REST in Him.