10.28.07
Yet…
Having recently dealt with the unexpected death of my own father, I’ve been sort of scared to read Pete Greig’s book God on Mute. The book basically deals with the Christian response to unanswered prayers, or the problem of pain, or why bad things happen to good people. Obviously, a subject that has been written about quite a bit. But I’ve found this book to beautifully blend the smartie, theologically-deep stuff with day-to-day life. Check out what Pete says about what he calls “the ultimate unanswered prayer” when Jesus asked that God take the cup from him.
‘Yet…’ and on that single word from Jesus, I imagine traffic screaming to a halt and birds falling from the sky. The Father’s hand pauses by the cup, heaven falls silent in suspense, hell jeers, drooling with lust for blood and power, too stupid to understand its own undoing. ‘Yet not my will’ - and perhaps the screams of delight in hell were so loud when they heard these four words from the lips of the one whose will had tormented them for so long that they never even heard the final five words at all - ‘but your will be done.’
Isn’t that where all of us need to be in our lives? Able to say that no matter what, we will give up our personal needs for God’s greater glory? This is a tough prayer to prayer the day before nails are driven through your wrists, or when the cancer is inoperable, or when your dad is mechanically breathing after a freak car accident. And I’ll be the first to admit, that kind of prayer was the furthest from my mind at that time. All I could offer to God were groans and hope that the Holy Spirit was able to piece together a prayer on my behalf.
But slowly … slowly … I think I’m getting to the point of being able to say “yet…”
heather seybold said,
10.29.07 at 11:03 am
wow…amen. thanks for sharing
Ryan said,
10.29.07 at 1:20 pm
Thanks for your transparency and for the compelling thought. How do we get past ourselves to get to the will of God? I love Psalm 37:4 but I can’t really figure out how to live it out.
Ryan
Patty (rockford) said,
10.31.07 at 11:19 am
But let your will be done.
Understanding this is key in a lot of situations and unfortunately to us who are left behind in a death of a loved one find it hard to understand. I believe that you knew my nephew Matthew Bellows who passed 3 years ago, his sister was killed last friday in an ATV accident. Our family is devistated by her loss because many of us knew that she has been struggling through life since her fathers death in 95, then Matt in 04. She has one sister left, Melissa and of course my sister Kathy left trying to deal with this horrible trajedy. We had her services last night and I felt comfort in knowing that as she journaled she would add scripture and thoughts in a possitive and meaningful way. We also learned that this summer she was moving in a direction towards finding God again. I hope through those years of pain and searching that she was able to again confess her faith. (His will be done) There were over 300 people at her memorial service. NOt only a testimony of whose lives she touched but also a group of people who gathered and heard about a wonderful Father who could love all of them as much as He loved Bev. At least two of the girls at the service that I know of consider suicide quite often. Several of her friends were heavily involved in drugs and drinking. I know how wonderful God is and how he could touch the lives of these people through the death of my loved one my little niece Bev. While she will be missed here I venture to say that I look forward to the eternity that is ours when we meet again in heaven. Please pray for my family as we will miss her so much.