Thread: Trusting in the Lord when it conflicts with our understanding
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Trusting in the Lord when it conflicts with our understanding
Posted : 30 Aug, 2011 12:36 PM
Trust in the Lord with all you heart... both the song and the scripture from Proverbs 3:5
I am struggling with this... and have a tendency to lean on my own understanding...:rolleyes:
When I was a younger Christian... I seemed more capable of doing a 180 in how I viewed things.. but now when I hear the story of Job... I think... wow... even though it was Satan that did the harm... from a friendship standpoint... hard to understand how God could let Satan wipe out Job's kids.
We all have had some loss that is hard to explain.. to understand...
How have you overcome leaning on your own understanding and instead been able to trust in the Lord with all your heart??
I look forward to hearing others takes on this and how they have overcome the human tendency to place our understanding of things, especially losses we have experienced to the level that it conflicts with and gets in the way of our trusting in the Lord with all our hearts.
What did God show you?
How did He accomplish getting you to let go of your understanding... completely to trust in Him with all your heart??
Trusting in the Lord when it conflicts with our understanding
Posted : 1 Sep, 2011 06:18 AM
It is good to know that in the times of Job... children were regarded as an extension of one�s status... and as a blessing to one�s walked path.... particulary sons.
Also, children provided you with a future.... they would take care of you when you would become in need or at age
So when the author of the book, has the satan take away all that Job possesses... he includes Job�s 10 children .... to wipe away his status and his future.
I have seen christian parents, when losing a child to the abyss of death, try to react like Job as he does in Job 1:20-22, thinking that God expects them to do so, only to see it lead to nothing but the deepest despair....
I have no understanding of why G-d allows children to die.... or why losses are put into our lives....but I do know that we can and should turn to G-d in our despair and tears, not only with a pious attitude proclaiming the words of Job, but particulary with our rage, pain and frustration....
Once again, the author of Job did not intend to prescribe how to proceed when we lose such precious and invaluable gifts as children....
So when trying to face these tremendous losses, grief and pain.... Job is not the right biblical reference - at least the Job as described in chapter 1....
There are far more healing, comforting and guiding bible parts.. but most of all... there is G-d Himself....
Trusting in the Lord when it conflicts with our understanding
Posted : 4 Sep, 2011 08:16 AM
Thanks for the input... especially chapter 1 of Job not being the best biblical reference to help us with our loss... I am guilty of using that as a reference... as you correctly surmised...
Fortunately, I have not lost children... but like many I have had a few losses. In my case in a few areas of my life over and over... and over again. Tough to understand.
I would like to be a help to others who have or are still enduring loss. I look forward to hearing more; to learn and apply in my own life and for healing of my own heart; and so that I can also share with others on this topic.
Trusting in the Lord when it conflicts with our understanding
Posted : 4 Sep, 2011 04:07 PM
Mike, I do understand what you are feeling and going through and hope it gets better for you soon. I too have had several losses in my life and it's not easy to deal with. But God has shown me to pray and to trust Him more. I will keep you in my prayers and pray that you will be able to help the many others, that are struggling with all this.
Trusting in the Lord when it conflicts with our understanding
Posted : 5 Sep, 2011 04:31 AM
My two cents
Trusting in the Lord ALWAYS conflicts with our understanding!
Actually trust and understanding are totally incompatible as the verb to trust explicitly means lack of understanding...
When we are to trust, we are supposed to let go of questions and doubts. The person whom we trust, knows what he/she is doing and we do not need to worry. All is going to be fine.
Trusting God is so difficult because we feel, as faithful christians, that we cannot stop to trust Him. We can stop to trust our partner and check his/her cellphone.... we can stop to trust our bank and simply take out the money of the saving account, and we can stop to trust a president and simply vote for another.
What I am trying to say is that we people have a tendancy to act when we have doubts.... we restore our trust after the doubts have been cleared or we stop to trust somebody and put our trust in somebody else.
With God, since there is but One.... both human actions are not an option. As christians we feel impotent when we have doubts... should we continue to trust or should we stop to believe?
And when we find pain and suffering on our path, we have another player in our heart: the deceiver (satan) who asks us where this good God of ours is??? And if we believe so much in Him, how come we do not trust Him now??
There is a good way of trusting and a damaging way.
The damaging way of trusting is that we trust because we lack a better option.
This occurs when people have an image of God that is more or less like: it can freeze, it can thaw... He gives and He takes.... God conceals and reveals, we have to accept that.
The above said about God is all true but it is not God�s identity that we need to know, it is our faith that needs to be build, very specific knowledge of how much God loves us to be exact, that builds faith
People who cannot accurately describe how God has revealed Himself, in, through and to Creation, based on the Bible, are usually the ones who are totally lost when they suffer losses.
The less they know.... the easily the are lost.
Howbeit, easily or difficult to be lost.... once lost, the main question, why did God let this happen to me?? (expressing doubts and being unable to rationally reason to a satisfying answer)
should be turned into a statement of trust and faith: He WILL provide and does not leave me perish!
This turning from doubt into trust is the key from going out of mourning into morning
But be aware that there is no magic formula to achieve this, and also note that only God Himself speaks words of wisdom and comfort. We can sometimes shed our light, but a person who has suffered losses should always be encouraged to pray and read the bible him/herself.
Bible parts that I find very inspiring to keep faith are the Psalms (inspiring in the sense of noticing that before me, so many have struggled with that trust and put their troubles into words)
Psalm 62, 31 for instance but you will find many more while reading this part of the bible
For study how to build faith and trust beyond understanding I would recommend a study of the the book of Ruth and the bible part of the 40 years through the desert of the people of Israel.
And finally, your question what God has showed me: He has showed that He will bow sooo deep to lift me up that it is too absurd to believe.
But Mike, I only saw that when looking back, when He was carrying me in the midst of the crises I only saw fog and felt chaos .... but He led me into calm waters, then I saw His trail (or should I say traces...) and I noticed how beyond any imagination He had accomplished what nobody else could do... wipe my tears away, heal my wounds and give me a purpose in life.
To me it is without any doubt: He absolutely IS the sheppard who leaves the 99 to go and look for that missing one.
You can believe me when I say so, and trust Him to do so.
Trusting in the Lord when it conflicts with our understanding
Posted : 8 Sep, 2011 06:12 PM
Hi Mike,
I don't think loss is the only applicable concept here. Most of us have to relearn the same hard lessons over and over, because they are our weakness. You happen to have quoted my favorite verses (well vs. 6 too)........and this is a lesson I have to continually supress my urge to guide God.......now how laughable is that? And how many times do I have to relearn this lesson......:rolleyes:
Trusting in the Lord when it conflicts with our understanding
Posted : 8 Sep, 2011 06:30 PM
Hi JourneyCC..
Thanks for the post... you are right about our attempts to sometime guide God... I give into that temptation more often than I should...
For example... Now God, you know I need the money, so could you please cause me to win the Lottery tonight... ... I have done this... terrible as it sounds... and more than once.. :rolleyes:
I cannot fantom the loss some must experience when a married relationship fails through no fault of their own... or when people lose their children or other loved ones for no understandable reason... or worse yet, which might apply in my case, that our Lord never seems to answer our prayers for loved ones to be saved. That is a pretty HUGE loss imo.
Leaning on our own understanding.... versus trusting in God... well... as we get older, at least I think discernment and understanding is often needed as well as trust... and doing all for me is and has been difficult. See Psalm 32:9.
Trusting in the Lord when it conflicts with our understanding
Posted : 20 Nov, 2012 04:41 AM
i am currently in same position as you are right now...and honestly my initial reaction anger....i asked Him "how can You do this to me again? i am so tired and my rope of patience has been stretched so much that i do not know how to cope.."
here's my story:
at the age of 21 i was an orphan, i lost my mom because of cancer in 1999, before her death anniversary my dad died..me and my siblings relocated and was under the roof of my grandmother..a year after my 5-year bf left me and married someone else...a month after my grandmother died...i was the eldest of five...so i was forced by the situation to stand strong and provide as much as i can for my younger siblings....didnt allow myself to fall in love cuz i am so afraid being left alone...fast forward..with all my hurts and pain..i gave up my faith and live according to my understanding...
unfortunately i was so unhappy...and resentment grew in me..just 1 year ago i recommitted myself to God...and my worse fear happened again...my uncle (my dad brother) died few months ago..he was like my second father...and my bf gone mia 2 weeks now-no words at all....my first reaction was anger...i was so angry at God to let this happen to me again...i was confused..hurt beyond i can even imagine possible...worst when i call Him.,...He seem so silent....but i've decided to never let go..I dont know where He will lead me...all i can think of...i might missed something the first time cuz it feels ym like in the same boat again...
For now I trust Him...i dont understand but still choose to trust Him....
