It is what it is...

“Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.” (Psalms 139:12)

When tragedy strikes, when infirmities set in, when a moment of crisis lingers, stringing successive crisis moments into hours and days and nights of more of the same, what set of emotions and thought processes do we default to?

• Why us?
• Why this?
• Why now?
• Why doesn't God make it better?

Why do we spend so much time asking, "why"?


We already know that God is...

• Sovereign - “...his dominion is an everlasting dominion...” (Daniel 7:14a) 
• Good - “Thou art good, and doest good;...” (Psalms 119:68a)
• Loving - “I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness...” (Psalm 138:2a)
• Immutable - “Thy testimonies are very sure...” (Psalms 93:5a)

We already know that God's purpose for us was set in motion long before we were born. Remember the man born blind?

“1 ¶ Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. 2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" 3 Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.” (John 9:1-3)


We already know what to expect from this temporal existence; that being in Christ does not exempt us from the human condition. “...In the world ye shall have tribulation...” (John 16:33)


We already know that regardless of how things go for us here, eternal relief and victory await us... not yet, but sooner than we think!


“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;” (2 Corinthians 4:17)
 
So, what's the problem? Why so much time asking, "why"?

Sometimes, the answer is the same one you gave to your toddler yesterday after the 100th time that he asked you, “why?”. The answer is, “because!”

It is what it is. Whether we understand it or not, whether we are in Christ or not, whether we resign ourselves to it or not, it is what it is!

There should not be that much room in a Christian's heart for disappointment. Do we catch ourselves thinking that God has promised something that maybe he has not? It may be our own wishful thinking that has set us up for having a problem with how things turn out later.

When we are overwhelmed, crushed, reeling, barely keeping it together, God grant us the grace and the space to reflect:

•  Am I somehow exempt from the human condition that affects everyone else?
• Has God lied to me or been unfaithful?
• Did I embrace Jesus Christ because I thought that by doing so my world would change or because of the eternal victory he promised me over the world?

Remember what Jesus said? “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33b)

Our God is Lord over the entire human condition. On the other side of our darkest days, we are often allowed a glimpse or two of how he was glorified, how his kingdom was enlarged, how others were strengthened, how others were drawn to Christ.

Yes, the world... it is what it is... but hey, God is God and he is what he is! 

He will never forget us, never let us down; his glory does not wane, his brightness does not diminish, even though we have trouble seeing it in the midst of our personal darkness. 

“...the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.” (Psalms 139:12b)