Lord, I Don't Understand

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." - Isaiah 55:8-9

During the first year of your life, your parents probably took you to the doctor all the time. You were constantly going in for checkups so the doctors could make sure you were healthy and on the right track. Usually, these checkups would include some vaccinations. The nurse would come into the room while your mom or dad held you in their lap, and a small needle would puncture your cute, chubby leg, causing you to burst into tears.

Your parents would try their best to console you. They’d hold you, talk to you in soothing voices, pat you on the back, but no matter what they tried, you’d keep crying. 

In that moment, your parents could have looked you square in the face and said, “Sweetie, I know this hurts right now, but I promise this is for your good. This is going to protect you from something even more painful down the road.” But even if they did, you wouldn’t understand. You would have absolutely no idea what they were saying to you. All you could understand was that the needle hurt, you were in pain, and you wanted to feel normal again.

Our relationship with our heavenly Father often works the same way. He knows we’re in pain. He knows we’re uncomfortable, and He knows we want are looking for peace and comfort. But He also knows that there is a purpose in what He’s allowing us to endure. He knows what’s best for us, and He will use whatever means necessary to give us His best and prepare us for what’s to come. 

So, regardless of what circumstances you find yourself in right now, remember this. Just because we want to know the reason behind our trials and suffering doesn’t mean we’re guaranteed to understand that reason, even if we were told. 

Instead, maybe we just need to trust that God knows best, regardless of whether or not we can grasp His definition of “best.” Maybe this is an invitation to rest in the knowledge that we are loved and cared for by an all-knowing God, who has an eternal perspective that far outreaches our own limited viewpoint. 

Don’t forget, we were never commanded to understand God. We were only told to trust Him…to not lean on our own understanding, but to acknowledge Him with every step, every moment, every thought, and every word, and if we do, He promises to guide us down a path of peace. 

So in the midst of a world who is desperate for understanding, let’s choose to trust the One whose understanding far surpasses our own.