Trust and Rejoice 

“As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.”

Ecclesiastes 11:5

For the longest time, I insisted that God explain my wheelchair to me. Even now, when one problem piles on top of another, I occasionally find myself thinking of Psalm 13 (NIV) where it says, “How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?” And then, the third verse, “Look on me and answer!” When my pain feels excruciating and too much to bear, or when I find myself struggling to breathe through heavy congestion, my natural inclination is to expect an answer from God. 

But Almighty God owes us no explanation for why we have so many problems. He did all his explaining at the cross. So, instead of insisting on answers, we need to be like David who, near the end of Psalm 13 says, “But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.” 

God conceals many things about his plan for us, secrets that he will never reveal this side of eternity. Besides, if God’s mind were small enough for us to understand, he wouldn’t be God! Even the great Apostle Paul admitted that he was often perplexed about the Lord’s dealings with him (2 Corinthians 4:8).  

To encourage and strengthen our faith, God will at times enable us to understand the why behind our problems, and there’s nothing sweeter than seeing our difficulties from his perspective. But wisdom is more than just seeing our problems through God’s eyes—wisdom is also humbly trusting him even when we cannot understand.  

Lord, forgive me for the times I have demanded answers as though you owe me an explanation. Help me to rest in the amazing love you showed on the cross; may that be all the explanation I need. I rejoice in your salvation today, so build my trust in you so that I can even praise you for the mystery of your ways.