God-Forgetting or God-Remembering?

Paul Tripp's thoughts: "I looked everywhere. I looked high and low. There wasn't a drawer, a cabinet, or a dark closet I didn't tear apart in my search. I even went out to the car twice to make sure I hadn't left it there. And after all my searching, it was just as lost as when I had begun. That night it hit me that my lost file was a picture of how little control I have over my own life. I do not even have sovereignty over my little world to guarantee that I will never lose important things. It can be a bit scary to consider. You and I have very little power and control over the most significant things in our lives. You and I don't know what's going to happen next. We have little control over the principle people in our lives, little power over the situations in which we live, and almost no control over the locations of our lives.

Honestly facing your lack of sovereignty over your own life produces either anxiety or relief. Anxiety is God-forgetting. It is the result of thinking that life is on your shoulders, that it is your job to figure it all out and keep things in order. It's worrisome to think that your job in life is to work yourself into enough control over people, locations, and situations that you can rest assured that you will get what you think you need and accomplish what you think you need to accomplish. If you fall into this way of thinking, your life will be burdened with worry and your heart will be filled with dread.

But there is a much better way. It is God-remembering. It rests in the relief that although it may not look like it, your life is under the careful control of One who defines wisdom, power, and love. In all those moments when life is out of your control, it is not out of his control: "For his dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation;... and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, 'What have you done?'  (Dan. 4:34-35).

You see, rest is not to be found in your control but in God's absolute rule over everything. You will never be in a situation, location, or relationship that is not under his control."

Candy's thoughts: My good friend Patti S. sent this page from Paul Tripp's daily devotional book. She said, "It seemed particularly relevant for what we are facing today." Isn't that the truth? But I guess that shouldn't surprise us: God even knows weeks in advance which excerpt from which book I will post here on CandyceLand. Today's came from something a friend read and passed along to me. Who knew? God knew. 😎

But more to the main point: God wasn't surprised when COVID-19 was released upon the earth. He didn't all of a sudden think "OOOPS - I lost track of that pesky germ." And He knows exactly when we will all be set free from our homes to shop for food without having some stranger do that for us. 

I am so thankful that God is sovereign, and not Mother Nature or bad luck or a random universe. The other options are impersonal. Yahweh is personal, and Jesus is Yahweh in person who cares for us even in the midst of pandemics. We can trust the great I-AM to rule all things well.