1 Corinthians 4:1
Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.
After all of my years with God, I am still amazed by His grace. It seems that I should expect it by now, but as the old hymn says, “His mercies are new every morning.” He is so coordinated and seems to plan my shortages in times of plenty and my needs in times of great blessing. As I dwell under the hand of His grace, I am reminded that I am a “steward” of the “mysteries of God.” I am given unexplainable mercy and receive unexplainable gifts because I serve the God of the universe.
When my husband’s truck needed $900 in repairs, it just so happened to be the same time at which we received several checks in the mail for a couple of hundred dollars each. That never happens! We never have $900 to spare… but that month we did. Last week my husband’s truck started giving us problems again and it is still not drive-able. But, wouldn’t you know it, this happened concurrently with some friends moving into town that happened to have an extra car for us to borrow until the truck is fixed.
This past year, I have struggled with loneliness. My only friends were the people I worked with. I always found myself thanking the Lord for putting me in a place where I got along with the people and we enjoyed each other’s company. Well, over the past month at work, three of my closest co-workers have given their notice. I have been very sad over the loss of this social time with such close girlfriends but, just at the time that I was attempting to complain to God about it, He reminded me that He had just moved two godly women into my apartment complex to come work on Deeper Devotion. God’s timing is impeccable!
The older I get and the more I learn about the world, the more I realize that people just don’t understand God. They don’t understand Him because they don’t know Him and, unfortunately, they don’t want to know Him until they understand Him. My heart weeps over my lost friends as they try to make sense of the world on their own. I ache when I hear them talk about the ways they plan on finding happiness- a new job, a night of drinking, a new boyfriend… and I wish they could see the truth staring them in the face. The true joy and peace of a life lived with their Creator.
The reason I find joy in our truck breaking down is because I expect God’s provision and I can’t wait to see His hand at work. The reason I have peace in the face of job uncertainty and disappointment is my expectation of God’s direction. You see, just like my co-workers, I don’t know what I want to do with my life and I’m not sure we’ll be able to pay all of the bills next month, but I know the God who provides and cares for His children. I know the God who gave me a job when our money was about to run out. I know the God who gave me a sense of security when my husband left for work every night at 10pm. I know the God who is good. I am the steward of His mysteries because He has never let me go and never let me down. I hold His mysteries because He has loved me and in that love is where the mystery lies and the answer is found.