When I was a kid, I was always asking questions. How does this work? Why does that happen? Why doesn’t it work like this? Even though I have learned a lot through my life, I am still very curious about many things. Curiosity, if directed correctly, can be a beneficial thing. However, we need to realize that there are certain things that we will never know and understand completely, until we stand before God.
Jesus tells His Apostles, “I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.” However, He also tells them that the Spirit of truth will guide them to the truth. In today’s society, where information is at our fingertips, we don’t like to be left in the dark. We don’t need to know everything and sometimes the answer we seek is withheld from us for a good reason.
Maybe we aren’t mature enough to handle something or maybe we just aren’t emotionally, spiritually, or intellectually ready to hear the answer. When explaining things to our kids, we use age appropriate explanations. If a child asked a rocket scientist how rocket propulsion worked, they would get a different answer than if a more knowledgeable adult asked. Everyone has different levels of what they can handle emotionally, spiritually, and intellectually. The Holy Spirit will guide us to the answer, but it may be a very gradual process.
When I pray, I try to say things like, “Please lead me to where You want me to go,” or “Please let this happen if it is Your will for me.” Jesus even said, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.” Too often we have the attitude of my way or the highway and that we are the sole decider on what we should get or what we deserve in life. There are many great people who deserve much more than they have and many bad people who are living it up. Life isn’t always fair.
Let’s talk about fair. Is it fair that someone is born blind, or deaf, or without a limb, or with a mental problem? Is it fair for a child who dies at an early age and doesn’t get to grow up and experience the joys of life? Is it fair for the woman who is raped and now has to deal with an unwanted pregnancy? Is it fair for the child who grew up without a loving Mom and Dad? How fair was it that the sinless Jesus Christ who came to us because He loves us and wanted to save us was beaten and hung on a cross until He was dead? Life most definitely isn’t fair by any stretch of the imagination.
Our approach to the fortunes and hardships life presents us with is what gives us eternal happiness or takes it away. Do we give up or turn negative when bad things happen? Do hardships make us stronger or weaker? How do we use the fortunes and gifts that we get in this life? Do we just use the gifts to improve ourselves or do we use our gifts to lift up others as well?
There will always be times in life where we seek direction and answers. We need to ensure we are looking in the right places for the answer. We get into trouble when we start messing around with horoscopes, fortune tellers, and supernatural forces outside of God. We also get into trouble when we rely only on ourselves. Pray for the Holy Spirit to guide us and we will find our answer. Sometimes, the answer we find may not be the one we want to hear, but it will be the right one.
