But Why, God?

“The LORD has made everything for its own purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil.” Proverbs 16:4

For its own purpose – Do we really believe that God made everything for a reason? Actually, the literal translation suggests that God made everything for his (or its) answer (Hebrew: ma’aneh). The idea is that nothing accidental occurs. There are no events that do not fit into the grander scheme of God, even the wicked events.

So I ask again: Do we really believe that this is so? My experience is that most often Christians proclaim the sovereignty of God as an intellectual belief, but when it comes to daily living in the hard world, we aren’t so confident. Why do I say that? Because time and again I have experienced life on the edge when God’s hand seems absent, when events just don’t make any sense, when bad things happen for no apparent reason and when I must wrestle with the question, “But why, God?”

If you have never run into the wall of doubt about the sovereignty of God, then you are truly unique. The events of this life under the power of the prince of this world are designed to shake the very foundations of your faith in the character of God. You and I are battered so that we will act as though God is absent. Oh, we can go right on claiming that God is sovereign, but our actions will take on a new flavor. Caution, suspicion, fear and anxiety will surface in unguarded places. We will begin to act as if we are responsible for the ebb and flow of our lives.

It is so hard to stand on the edge and still act on the basis of God’s sovereign control. On the edge, life is shaky. The next step looks like a fall off the cliff. The storm clouds my vision and the howling wind shouts at me to be afraid. I would be a fool to go forward, trusting only in the character of the Lord. But that’s what sovereignty is all about – going forward based only on who God is, not on what I see around me. That is the real doctrine of sovereignty. It’s useless to me as a statement in a creed. It only counts when I make it the source of my actions.

Today, will you let everything become a declaration of His purpose?