Isaiah 55:8-9 says, “‘My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,’ says the Lord. ‘And my ways are far beyond anything you could ever imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.’”
Why Jesus? Why are you so confusing? Why do others see you and hear from you, but I can’t? Why am I suffering? Why haven’t you stopped coronavirus?
Maybe you can relate to some of these questions, or maybe your questions are different. Regardless, we all have a lot of things that we are struggling with personally, which make us question God. Often times we don’t feel safe asking these questions, afraid that someone will judge us. Feel comforted that we all have questions and that we are allowed to ask God and others our questions.
What if I told you that you may never get the answers you’re looking for? I know this seems scary, but this is actually what makes our relationship with God so much better and more intimate.
Isaiah 55:8-9 says, “‘My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,’ says the Lord. ‘And my ways are far beyond anything you could ever imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.’”
Take a moment and picture yourself as 5 years old again. Imagine you are playing with your favorite stuffed animal. Now picture Jesus coming up to you and ripping that teddy bear right from your hands. At 5, you’d probably start throwing a tantrum. You’d be so confused and you’d ask “Why Jesus?” What you don’t see is the bigger, softer teddy bear he’s hiding for you behind his back.
Yes, we have questions and it’s good to ask. Getting answers is not the goal though. Instead of getting angry, God is inviting us to trust. If we knew everything about God, there would be no reason to want to get to know him more. God, who is bigger than our own understanding, has power and significance. A god we can understand is small and holds no power. We can’t trust a powerless god. Our God wants a relationship where we trust that he has something better for us than what we can see right now.
So maybe the question we should be asking is how. How Jesus? How can I trust you even when I am so confused and I’m not getting any answers?
When we ask how we are giving God a willing heart. We are stating that we will do whatever it takes to keep our relationship with God strong. Through this we get something better than answers; we get to trust and lean on a God who has something bigger and better for us to set our hopes on.
The next time you ask “why Jesus?”, try asking “How Jesus?” Instead. You will see a change not in your circumstances, but in your heart. That change will fill you with hope and love, rather than confusion and doubt.