Where was God

BY THE WAY…

Did you miss J.A.’s recent radio interview with Angel Eyes? Click here to listen: J.A and Rachel

atomic-bomb-girl

Where was God when the bomb dropped?

NO, no, we’re not talking about Hiroshima.

I MEAN the bombs of life. That moment—not necessarily atomic, but still toxic.

THOSE MOMENTS. They hit unexpectedly and majorly tripped you up or completely knocked you off your feet.

BEFORE it happened, you had faith to move that mountains. But instead of melting into the sea, that mountain expanded 50 feet on all sides.

WHERE was God?

DEATH. Cancer. Fired from the firm. Failed the MCAT. Served divorce papers. Miscarried. Betrayed by your bestie. A child gone missing….

YOU were faithful. You prayed. Worshipped. Loved. Even served. In fact, you prayed and fasted, believing this particular bomb would never drop.

But it did DROP

Did you downplay it? “There’s other jobs out there…” though your heart is devastated.
Did you blame yourself? “If only I’d studied longer…” though you knew you did your best.
Did you blame another? “If she’d gotten the help she needed, then…” though you knew she did not want help.
Did you blame God? “Lord, if only You had been here, then…” as you buckle under the stress.

Where was God? He was doing what He does best. Mending and fixing. Opening and closing doors. Working out deliverance. Doing open-soul surgery.

chocolate-hearts .

A FRIEND recently shared with me her story — and the unexpected outcome blew me away. Her marriage had been on the rocks, and her hope for recovery was dwindling. But she still had faith that God could fix anything and soften the hardest of hearts. While her husband was out of town, she received a dozen roses and a box of chocolates for Mother’s Day.

Her heart leapt with a sliver of hope, and her initial thought was, “He’s trying! He actually wants this marriage.”

ALL HOPE VANISHED when she opened the card. The greeting was addressed to another woman, from his workplace, along with a doting “love you” message.
Talk about heartbreak, if not a heart attack.

TO MAKE matters worse, she confronted her spouse with the card and received this bragging reply: “That’s just a stupid mistake on the part of the florist. Hey, I sent Mother’s Day flowers to six people. I’ve got friends, you know.”

That is a major bomb — dropped smack on the soul, crushing the heart.

WHAT effect does that have on the “faith that moves mountains”?
I had to ask.

MY FRIEND’S insightful answer astounded me.
(After bawling and breaking dishes) she fell to her knees in her secret place. She did not blame God, but instead asked, “Lord, I know You love me. Please show me where You were at that moment. Only Your perspective is the right one.”

A while later and at just the right time…
GOD ANSWERED her in a clear impression. “I did not want your heart to be cruelly teased again into believing he would come around.” Out of great compassion, the Lord had miraculously orchestrated the 6 flower orders so the “wrong” card would arrive at my friend’s house and reveal her husband’s true intentions — a scorning unfaithfulness.
“OTHERWISE,” she added, “my heart would’ve followed that sliver of false hope, and I would have ended up with deeper wounds than what was already there.”

GOD WAS merciful. Did His orchestrated moves involve pain? Yes, it hurt! No way around that. But, “Better are the wounds of a friend (or of God) than many kisses from the enemy.” Proverbs 27:6

What about you?

WHERE was God when the bomb dropped on you?

HAVE YOU merely grumbled to friends, “Why did God allow such a horrible thing!?”

NO TRESPASSING. Did you close off that area of your heart?

HUMILITY. Set your aside your opinions. Inquire of the Lord God who knows all things including people’s hidden motives. (Rehearsing the ‘bomb’ in our minds is not the same as an inquiry, and it only deepens the distress.)

ASK Him. No time like the present. “God, show me where You were when . . . ”
KEEP an open heart and keep pressing in. He collects tears of sorrow for a purpose.
WHEN the time is right, He’ll give you surprising answers that will comfort you. He’s waiting to bring healing and guidance to take the next step.

Trust the sovereignty of the Master Engineer.
His character and nature are unchanging.
His thoughts toward His children are always for peace.