I’ve been thinking lately that I should not be surprised when God specifically, pointedly, answers a specific question I ask him about what I should do or how I should act.
After all, he says in James 1: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all, without finding fault, and it will be given to him.”
There’s only one requirement. We’ve got to believe that the advice God gives is worth following. “But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt. For the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. He is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.”
I’ve gotten a lot of answers to specific questions lately. It continues to amaze me. But perhaps I shouldn’t be so surprised.
Sometimes I feel like I shouldn’t still have any questions. God has told me what He wants me to do over and over again. Why do I still get doubts and questions? But that’s the beauty of the fact that God will give wisdom “without finding fault.” He never lectures like an impatient parent, “Now, I’m only going to say this once!”
Recently, I found myself wondering if I was being “unrealistic” believing that God had told me to stand for my marriage. With all the hurts behind us, it didn’t seem “realistic,” it didn’t seem “practical” to think that God could possibly restore our relationship. I asked God, “Am I just having wishful thinking?” “Am I being unrealistic?”
The very next day, Pastor Ed preached a sermon titled, “The Limitations of Common Sense” (http://www.gatewaychurch.org/content/view/526/85/) which directly and specifically answered my questions. The example was Jeroboam, King of Israel. God had promised to give him ten tribes of Israel, and even build him an everlasting dynasty if He would follow the Lord. But that request did not seem practical….
When God gives you a plan of action coupled with a promise, it’s not about what’s realistic or practical. It’s about what God can do.
The question is not: Is this practical? The question is: Will I obey God?