Exodus 8:15 But when Pharaoh saw that there was relieve, he hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the LORD had said.
Smith talks about bargaining with God – foxhole prayers come to mind; you know, when the soldier tells God that if God will save his life, the soldier will change his ways. Of course, God saves the guy, and how quickly does he forget that prayer of desperation?
Not many of us pray from literal foxholes, but we do pray from tough circumstances – begging God to intervene when a loved one is sick, a child is making a life-threatening decision, or when job loss is at the door. Smith calls them “frogs,” like the ones that threatened Pharaoh’s peace. And I would guess most of those reading these words lay out their frogs, or prayer requests before God, asking for his leading, and his will.
Then, he answers! And his answer might not be exactly what we wanted, or under the circumstances we requested. Then what? Smith refers to bargains, but I am not sure it always a bargain that is the issue. Sometimes it is maintaining belief and trust and faith when the thing we want comes with such strings that we hardly recognize it as what we thought we asked for.
The loved one is dying, and we ask for God’s will and relief from the pain, and the loss brings a pain greater than we imagined. Oh, God answered the prayer, but we didn’t know it would mean this.
God is still God, and He is still good and loving and kind and doing something good – didn’t we just read that: Satan meant it for evil, but God meant it for good. I guess that is the bottom line – rehearsing that when our circumstances would scream out something else.
God is not a merchant in the open market huckstering his gifts to the highest bidder. He is ever the loving One, no matter what I am feeling, no matter how fierce the attack might be, no matter how alone we might feel…he is right here, ever the same, ever loving.
I like what you said about "rehearsing" the truth that God is good. In the midst of those difficult times, when we tend to question what God is doing, we can look back and remember God's faithfulness.
ReplyDeleteThere's so much depth to the Lord that we will never understand Him...and if we did He would not be God. A Steven Curtis Chapman song comes to mind "God is God and I am not." Praise the Lord!
ReplyDeleteWhenever I hear people say, "and God was good to me and spared....." I want to jump up and say, God is good ALL the time! If the situation had turned out 'badly' for you, God still would have been GOOD!
ReplyDeleteWe seem to have the mistaken idea that God is good only when good things happen to us. How terribly sad that mentality is...that is why people question God's goodness when evil times/days/events come. God's character has not changed because Satan plundered our lives....God is good...All the time. Amen.
Just an aside...did you notice that Moses asked God 'Why?" twice in Exodus 5?
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