"Jesus? he whispered as his voice chocked "I feel so lost". A hand reached out and squeezed his, and didn't let go. "I know, Mack. But it's not true. I am with you and I am not lost. I am sorry if it feels that way, but hear me clearly. You are not lost." (WM Paul Young, The Shack)There is something I heard a lot lately, and because it didn't make to much sense to me, I decided to look at it closer, especially since I found myself thinking "could this be right?"
The theory in itself sounds something like "I have asked the Lord which way to go and what decision to make, but what if I miss it, what if I pass a blessing by?"
Is this even possible? Can I seek Adonai for guidance in all sincerity and still get lost and miss what He had for me? Not according to everything I found so far in the Bible. I could not find one single verse to support the theory "One day, you will get to Heaven and see all the blessings you passed by", which makes me think this is nothing else but an image a preacher once used in a sermon to make a point and somewhere along the way it was turned into "doctrine". However, if any of you finds a verse anywhere, do let me know.
So, if this theory doesn't have any support in the Bible, how come it seems to be so popular, that every time one of us is at a crossroad and has to make a decision, this thing pops up? I believe it's nothing else than a "nicely" design trick to distract us from the true question, the one question that will follow us until the end "Can your God be trusted?" It's not about the crossroad and it's not about the decision but it's very much about the answer I give myself to this question when I get to the crossroad- Can my God be trusted?
I will share some of the conclusions I got to whilst seeking an answer to my question:
- God invested time, effort and a great deal of patience and love in my life. He did not bring me this far only to now, abandon me to my own devices and allow me to end up on a completely wrong path. That will never happen. Not because of me, but because of His nature. God's heart reacts to trust: "...Then you will know that I am the Lord. Those who trust in me will never be put to shame.” (Isaiah 49:23b, NLT)
- He is not setting us up for failure. He knows what we are capable of and we know know what I am capable of without Him. He doesn't need to make a case study out of me just to prove that I mess up big time without Him. This has already been agreed on both sides. So if He would test anything through this situation, it will be the same thing- "Do you trust Me?". He knows that "we are but shadows and dust": "For He remembered that they were merely mortal, gone like a breath of wind that never returns." (Psalm 78:39, NLT)
- The only way I can miss something that God has for me, is if I live in disobedience. If He clearly tells me to go in one direction and I consciously disobey. We all know when we are in disobedience, because the first sign is complete loss of this peace we have inside. I am His and He is very much preoccupied with everything that is going on in my life. I know I belong to Him, and I know that little voice in my heart that guides me, because it's the same voice that "tells me off" when I go on doing my own thing. For those of you already thinking: "For goodness sake, Emma, now you're hearing voices?", you might call Him conscience, but I know His name:"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand." (John 10:27-29, NIV)
- The Bible says if I ask and seek wisdom, He will give it to me freely. Therefore it is impossible to ask for wisdom in a situation and get lost and completely miss it. There is no such thing as asking for wisdom to know which way to go and miss an opportunity. He guards my path. No one can take away from me what God intends to give me. So if I don't receive it, it wasn't mine in the first place:"If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him." (James 1:5, NIV) "For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest. He is a shield to those who walk with integrity.He guards the paths of the just and protects those who are faithful to him." (Proverbs 2:6-8, NLT)
- You never seek His face in vain. His will for your life is not this big secret that you don't stand a chance of discovering, He doesn't speak in codes only to make your life difficult, or worse, not speak at all. I don't even know where on earth are coming up with this images of Him. He wants us to know Him, Yeshua said that we know where He's going and we know the way there (John 14:4). It's not some frustrating game of hide and seek, it's a relationship: "I have not spoken in secret, from somewhere in a land of darkness; I have not said to Jacob's descendants, 'Seek me in vain.' I, the LORD, speak the truth; I declare what is right." (Isaiah 45:19,NIV)
- For as long as I look at Him, I can't get lost. If I learnt something in nine years, is this- even if I would get lost, He will always come after me. I am His and He will never let me go. Even if I would want to abandon Him, He would not give me up without a fight. Bat Melech said once in an article that even on my way to hell God will fight me every step of the way. With God I am not on this never ending exam where I pass or fail. He wants me to succeed, He wants me to make the right decision. If I don't know which way to go He will guide me (Psalm 32:8), if I don't know something and I seek Him, He will show me: "Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." (Jeremiah 33:3)
Be blessed.
Emanuela.
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