Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.

Proverbs 3:5

I was wondering to myself the other day why I like people who admit that they don’t understand everything. I’m talking about people who are leaders in their fields, whether it be theology, medicine, or psychology. I guess I define a brilliant  person as one who knows his limits.

Before my husband and I had children, we just knew we were going to be brilliant parents. After all, our parents had done a great job raising us. With all our education, surely we could do an even better job ! We had four children in six years. And things went relatively smoothly until the first one started to school. But in the years that followed, as each child faced distinctively different cultural values and went through unique stages, my husband and I started wondering how much we knew about parenting after all.

At some point along the child-rearing way, we realized what God meant when He said not to lean on our own understanding. We were humbled by parenthood. But God showed us  mercy by intervening each step of the way.

Thought:  In the challenging task of child-rearing, I need God’s strength to compensate for my lack of understanding.

An after my skin is destroyed, this is I know, that in my flesh I shall see God.

Job 19:26

“Life should be easy” is a prevalent belief even among Christians. Many people search constantly for an easy way to get through life. They are disappointed time and time again as they are reminded daily that life is difficult and often excruciating.

Today, a promise in the Bible that we can cling to is from Romans 8:28. “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God.” God has never promised that we won’t have trials in this life. God has promised that He’ll turn bad things into good if we press on through the pain to find the good. And He has   made it clear that the greatest good will come after our earthly life is over.

Joni Erickson Tada is a good example for all of us. When she was paralyzed as a teenager, she believed God’s promise that things could still  work together for the good. She worked through and moved beyond the “life should be easy” lie. Joni came from a low point of bitterness to a place of complete surrender to God’s way. As a result, her life has touched millions. And she looks forward to an eternity in which she will leave her wheelchair and rejoice in God’s infinite goodness.

Thought:  My life as a believer consists of an infinite number of years of perfect joy and love-but starting off with seventy or eighty years of intermittent pain. I can live with that.