"Oh, the depth of the riches
both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable are His judgments and
His ways past finding out!"
Romans 11:33
both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable are His judgments and
His ways past finding out!"
Romans 11:33
"Through the years, God has used the lessons that Romans 11:33 teaches about Him to help me live out each day for Him with an acceptance of His dealings in my life. This single verse has taught me how to accept the unacceptable. The following principles, drawn from the application of this single verse, give me lens through which to look at everything that happens to me. I offer them to you as well.
1. I don't have to understand everything--What freedom this acceptance brings! Imagine, no more digging or dogged determination to get to the bottom of an issue.
2. I don't need to understand everything--What release this attitude brings! Why? Because it's an attitude that acknowledges that God is in control.
3. I can't understand everything--I am finite and limited, but God--who knows all and understands all-- is infinite and limitless.
4. Why ask "Why?"-- The man Job in the Old Testament never asked why when he was suffering. He worshiped instead. Notice very carefully what carried Job through his ordeal. Unlike the stance of the stoic (grin and bear it...or at least, grit your teeth and endure it), Job grabbed on to facts about God. Facts like-- God is...
... too kind to do anything cruel,
...too wise to make a mistake,
...too deep to explain Himself.
Believing these facts about God should erase all why's. We are to stop asking Why? and start looking at Who stands behind the scene. It is God in His absolute sovereignty! This calls us to worship.
5. It's O.K.-- When we can say this to God about our unexplainable and seemingly unacceptable situations, we experience the rest of faith and the peace of faith.
6. Let it go--Pry your grip off your problem, and let it be gone forever. Oh, the freedom you will experience, even without any change, when you accept the unacceptable.
7. Let God be God-- And what is He? Un-understandable, unsearchable, inscrutable, inexhaustible, unfathomable, and impossible to grasp.
8. Let go of your right to know-- Stop demanding answers from God. Cease saying to God, "I'm not getting up from prayer until You tell me or show me why this is happening!"
9. These are God's judgments--Whatever has happened to you, it is a part of God's judgments...and they are "unsearchable." You will never understand or know why, so you must accept the unacceptable.
10. These are God's ways--Again note the emphasis on God. Whatever has happened to you, it has to do with His ways, and they are "past finding out!" Again, you will never understand or find out, so you must accept the unacceptable.
11. No vengeance!-- (And please note, that's spelled n-o, not k-n-o-w!) God is the Author and Creator of your situation. He has a plan and a blueprint for your life that includes your situation and any people involved. God says to you, "Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, 'VENGEANCE, IS MINE, I WILL REPAY, says the Lord" (Romans 12:19)
12. It's not them, it's Him!-- One person does not have the power to limit, alter, or change your life. People are only God's instrument, and He uses them to conform you to the image of His dear Son.
-Elizabeth George, Loving God With All Your Mind, pg. 277-280-
2. I don't need to understand everything--What release this attitude brings! Why? Because it's an attitude that acknowledges that God is in control.
3. I can't understand everything--I am finite and limited, but God--who knows all and understands all-- is infinite and limitless.
4. Why ask "Why?"-- The man Job in the Old Testament never asked why when he was suffering. He worshiped instead. Notice very carefully what carried Job through his ordeal. Unlike the stance of the stoic (grin and bear it...or at least, grit your teeth and endure it), Job grabbed on to facts about God. Facts like-- God is...
... too kind to do anything cruel,
...too wise to make a mistake,
...too deep to explain Himself.
Believing these facts about God should erase all why's. We are to stop asking Why? and start looking at Who stands behind the scene. It is God in His absolute sovereignty! This calls us to worship.
5. It's O.K.-- When we can say this to God about our unexplainable and seemingly unacceptable situations, we experience the rest of faith and the peace of faith.
6. Let it go--Pry your grip off your problem, and let it be gone forever. Oh, the freedom you will experience, even without any change, when you accept the unacceptable.
7. Let God be God-- And what is He? Un-understandable, unsearchable, inscrutable, inexhaustible, unfathomable, and impossible to grasp.
8. Let go of your right to know-- Stop demanding answers from God. Cease saying to God, "I'm not getting up from prayer until You tell me or show me why this is happening!"
9. These are God's judgments--Whatever has happened to you, it is a part of God's judgments...and they are "unsearchable." You will never understand or know why, so you must accept the unacceptable.
10. These are God's ways--Again note the emphasis on God. Whatever has happened to you, it has to do with His ways, and they are "past finding out!" Again, you will never understand or find out, so you must accept the unacceptable.
11. No vengeance!-- (And please note, that's spelled n-o, not k-n-o-w!) God is the Author and Creator of your situation. He has a plan and a blueprint for your life that includes your situation and any people involved. God says to you, "Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, 'VENGEANCE, IS MINE, I WILL REPAY, says the Lord" (Romans 12:19)
12. It's not them, it's Him!-- One person does not have the power to limit, alter, or change your life. People are only God's instrument, and He uses them to conform you to the image of His dear Son.
-Elizabeth George, Loving God With All Your Mind, pg. 277-280-
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