But you were unwilling to go up; you rebelled against the command of the Lord your God. You grumbled in your tents and said, “The Lord hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us. Where can we go? Our brothers have made our hearts melt in fear. They say, ‘The people are stronger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky...’” {deuteronomy 1:26-28}I'd like to contrast this with a familiar story from the New Testament. As the news of Jesus spread throughout Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem, more people came to witness him teach and heal. On one particular occasion, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting and observing Jesus while he healed the sick.
Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.
When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”
The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” {luke 5:18-21}So these two true stories illustrate something meaningful to me. How do you let your circumstances and influential people determine if you pursue God and his plans for you? In the first story, the Israelites see opposition and conclude that God hates them. I admit there are a number of times where my circumstances have led me to similar (yet devastatingly inaccurate) thoughts about God. If God loves me, shouldn't I find his favor in my current situation? Because that is the predominant attitude in our culture, it's easy to arrive at this assumption. If you aren't for me, you are a "hater"; "good vibes" only, please. But God intended for the Israelites to be led into a war in order to fulfill His plan. Not exactly favorable circumstances. And yet God's plan was good: His purpose was to dwell among them.
The second story is similar. The group of friends are going to the place where the Lord Jesus is. When they arrive, they discover that the path is obstructed. Unbeknownst to them Jesus is surrounded by enemies as well. Surely they would have recognized the Pharisees and teachers of the law as important men of God. Maybe they would have determined, like the Israelites in the first story, that it was impossible to reach their destination. Who would cut in front of the most important men in the nation? There would certainly be consequences for that. Yet somehow their desire to see Jesus and their belief in him shifted their focus from their circumstances. They pressed on.
Lately I have been anxious about our family's future. I keep weighing options and trying to plan what I should do. But God has shown me that he has a plan for the next year that will be very good for all of us. Still I keep asking, "But what about the year after that?" My fears, like the Israelites, have me concerned about moving forward. My impulse is to be like them and despair~ God has brought me this far just to abandon me! But then God divinely times my reading of the story of the paralyzed man. A man who knows he can do nothing for himself is placed in the hands of Jesus. It is a literal picture of faith in God. My plans should be put into the hands of God. I need to start believing that what he does is for my benefit.
As hard as it is to comprehend, sometimes God's plan is to take you as an untrained soldier to the fortified walls of Jericho or lower you as a paralyzed man into a house full of Pharisees. The victory and the healing aren't determined by the circumstances. They are accomplished by God. And God is good to reveal to us that he can be trusted especially in the impossible moments. I am the one who must remember who God is and that he can be trusted. I am the one who must go to where he can be found and put my faith in him. I don't have to know the outcome, but I can boldly go forward because God is good.
