Tag Archives: God’s Ways

Life Lessons

Why do Bad things Happen to Good People? (Part Eight)

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                    Summing it all Up!

          Elihu , the fourth friend, had kept silent all this time as he was the youngest. But now he spoke up and gave his opinion of Job’s situation, and of what the others had said…     He was angry at all their speeches, even at Job for justifying himself rather than giving God the glory, and he was angry at the other three because they hadn’t been any help at all with their ideas. He said that he had waited in vain for them to say something constructive, and now that they had run out, he was going to give his opinion! “I’m nearly ready to bust”, he exclaimed, “so you all listen to me now! Job, you’ve been telling us  about all the good you’ve done in your life, and how you feel God has now deserted you! God deals with everyone differently, and He has the final say in men’s affairs. So take notice of this Job, and if you’ve got anything more to say, say it now!”

   Elihu then turned his attention to the others…”You guys think you’re the wise ones, now listen to me…Job thinks he has done nothing wrong. We know that God certainly does no wrong, and that He is over everything on earth…are you in God’s place to say these things against Job? Even if he has been talking rubbish, he is the one who is paying for it now! We’ve got to remember that God knows more than we do and that He knows what He is doing. Job’s words are just wasted in his situation!     “You all just listen to me! God is mighty in power, and what He does is right! He is great and we cannot know His wisdom, and how He orders the world, the rain, and the light that He gives! I tremble to speak on His behalf! Just take notice of the thunder, the whirlwinds that come, and the snow in its season. Just listen to me Job, there is no-one and nothing that can equal God’s might and majesty….this is why we are to fear Him!”

    Although he didn’t know it, Job’s trial was nearly at an end by this time. God then spoke directly to him and we will do well to listen to the things that He had to say to Job, and see what we can learn from them. Nothing that happens to us in this life is wasted if we take stock of the situation and learn from it.

Life Lessons

Man Proposes….

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            There’s an old saying that says…”Man proposes, but God disposes…”

There is more truth in this little ditty than first appears. We all like making plans, and sit down to get some idea of where we are going in the next few weeks. So it was with us. We had intended to visit the South Island once more, as it is some years since we last did this. With the restrictions put on us by Covid-19, we hadn’t got past just thinking about it. But now the pandemic had eased off in our country, and if we wanted to take advantage of what was left of the warmer weather, it was time to make some definite plans.

Finally, after tossing ideas around for a bit, we decided that halfway through March would be as good a time as any, and we would still be able to be back home for the next public holiday after Easter weekend.

    No sooner said than done. A few clicks on the computer and crossing Cook Strait on the ferry was all organised. Now we had something concrete to work towards. That was OUR proposal.

   But God had different ideas. Two things happened that we hadn’t reckoned on. First, the motorhome rolled into a bush and broke its grill….insurance job. But then the whole country was shut down again for a week, and we only had two weeks to go! Would the parts get through if the warehouse stayed closed? Not only that, how would we get through the affected area which was our only route to the ferry? So watch this space….it will be an on-going story. Now we have to put our money where our mouth is and put that verse into practice!! We have proposed, but God is the One who can dispose of them as quickly as they were made! We have to remember that God knows what is best for us, no matter how disappointed we may be!

There is another verse that says, “We know that ALL things work together for good for them who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28)

Life Lessons

Near Enough

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    We were working on a project together, and I was thinking it was time we were finished. “Well, that’s near enough”, I said as I put my gear down. My brother-in-law looked at it, and said, “Near enough is not good enough, Gwenyth, you’ll have to spend a bit more time on it!” Those words have stuck with me for over forty years, and whenever I am tempted to think “Near enough”, they come back to haunt me.

King Solomon was one who chose what was good, but it was not the best. He felt his need for wisdom to rule his people well, and that was good, but when it came to himself he made his own decisions based on worldly wisdom. He thought that by marrying these foreign princesses he would gain peace with their fathers’ nations, instead of trusting God to keep peace for him. What he didn’t reckon on in this reasoning, was that he was disobeying God’s commands to NOT marry anyone who did not follow Him. He was positive it wasn’t all that important and that it didn’t really matter….after all, look what he was gaining!

His wives brought their idols and foreign ideas with them, and as he gave each woman her own department, these idols were set up and worshipped by them. It wasn’t long before Solomon’s own walk with God had faltered, and then failed altogether. He had disobeyed God and failed in his duty. Although God blessed him physically and he became the wisest and wealthiest king that has ever been, yet his own spiritual life was dry and dusty, and he declared, “I’ve tried everything there is to try and it’s all vain and useless!”

He would have been far better off to have asked God not only for wisdom, but for an obedient heart to always follow His ways. How often in these things we say it’s “near enough” to just go to church each week and then to do our own thing the rest of the week forgetting about God’s ways. Let’s always remember that “near enough” is NOT good enough, especially in the matter of spiritual values!

Random Devotional Thoughts

What Next?

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LILYOur young friend has gone. Cancer is a cruel thing, asking no pardon but taking its allotted course. There are no “beg your pardons” for the pain it causes, both the physical pain and the mental and emotional pain of those who are left behind. No-one expects to see their grand-son born, married and then attend his funeral. Likewise the pain of seeing your son born, grow up, and then going through the trauma and pain of caring for him while an all pervading tumour gradually takes him away. We cannot imagine the pain of seeing your young husband of less than two years being in so much pain and gradually fading away, getting weaker and weaker, then not knowing you and eventually having to watch him taken from you.

We know that God’s ways are perfect, but that doesn’t lessen the grief and loneliness when the funeral service is all over. We can only hold onto Him and trust Him for the future knowing that He can see the end from the beginning..

Random Devotional Thoughts

God Knows.

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 lily                                                     “As for God, His way is perfect” (2 Samuel 22:31)….this thought has been running around in my head ever since hearing that a young friend had an inoperable brain tumour. A godly young man, newly married, with the promise of a life to serve God all his days, to be struck down like this! We do not understand the ways of God. We are told that His ways are not our ways and His thoughts not our thoughts  (Isaiah 55:8-9).

We know that we are told to pray earnestly and in company of others seeking the same thing, but we have to remember that God is Sovereign…each one of us belong to Him and He has control over us….we cannot demand things of Him, even when our wishes seem to line up with Scripture. Our times are in His hands…everything we have has come from Him, and we are to hold them lightly, not grasping them and saying, “They are mine!” We have to be thankful for the good things we have and have had in the past, and be ready to yield them up to the One who gave them to us.

It is so hard to know what to say to the family concerned that will be a comfort to them. They know all the Scriptures, they have faith that God can and does heal at times, but there are many godly people who have had to watch their loved ones slip away leaving them bereft… they have only God to turn to then and He can be more precious to them than ever.

What more can be said? We can only say in our prayers the words of our Lord Jesus….”Oh my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless not as I will, but as You will!”  (Matthew 26:39)