Toe-to-Toe

Please be in prayer for John today as he hosts the weekly radio show "Seven Days" It starts at 4.00PM on WVLZ 1180AM Knoxville & WKCE 1120AM Maryville. You can also listen to it live on the web at www.southernrootsradio.com

Numbers14:15,16 If you put these people to death all at one time, the nations who have heard this report about you will say, 'The LORD was not able to bring these people into the land he promised them on oath; so he slaughtered them in the desert.

Yesterday, in the news, much of the media covered the first words spoken by the co-pilot who was involved in the recent tragic Kentucky air-crash. He’s quoted as saying, “Why did God do this to me?” It’s a perfectly natural reaction to a disastrous event. It’s been asked by millions upon millions of people throughout the centuries and there’s no easy answer to that question.

Some people see questions like those as lack of faith or a defiant statement in the face of God. Most of the time the question is asked because of our bewilderment, deep sadness or anger, frustration and confusion. We are human beings with human failings. We are finite creatures with fragile minds and bodies.

Standing up to God in the midst of devastating circumstances is not sacrilegious or unfaithful. It’s part of the gift of free will that God bestows upon us. As Thomas Jefferson once said in 1774, “the God who gave us life…also gave us liberty.” In today’s Old Testament passage, we also read about Moses going toe-to-toe with God. God wants to destroy and completely annihilate the Hebrew children because of their sinful, rebellious, and ungrateful ways.

Moses then stands in the gap and confronts God. “If you do this,” he says, “then the other nations will get to hear about it and say that You are a God who breaks His promises, and who hasn’t the power to bring this people to the promised land.”

It was a bold statement, but it wasn’t defiant or attacking God. It was holding God to what He promised and in the end, that’s what happens. God does not destroy His people because He cannot break His covenant.

Sometimes in the midst of tragedy or grief, upset or serious disappointment, we get angry at God and blame Him for everything. The great thing about God is that He doesn’t chew us out and disregard us when we vehemently complain. Instead, as Moses later points out, “The LORD is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion.”

Prayer: Lord God, there are times in our lives when tragedy grieves us, disaster afflicts us, and disappointment brings us pain. During those events, we wonder where You are, what You are doing and why You haven’t helped us. When we get angry, be patient with us. When our faith is weak, be our strength. When we feel lost or abandoned, be our Guide and Comforter. In Christ’s Name, we pray. Amen.