Who Are You Dealing With?

Today’s scripture: Isaiah 28:14-22 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?

My thoughts (Lynnette Pullen-Bradford):

I made a deal with the devil, and I didn’t even know. Okay, maybe that’s a little dramatic. Let me explain. I underwent knee surgery earlier this year. It was supposed to be a minor procedure that only required 3-6 weeks of recovery. Here I am, 4 months later, still trying to recover. Anyway, this was not in our financial plan.

My wife and I knew we would be living on 60% of my income (short-term disability pay) for a couple of weeks, but we did not expect it to be a couple of months. To make matters worse, my employer’s way of calculating my income (I have a complicated pay rate) was, of course, in their best interest, and not even an accurate estimation, resulting in me receiving closer to 40% of my income. To top it off, they intermittently stopped paying for weeks, without notice, citing various causes from “paperwork” to “computer glitches.”

I had to call and speak to computerized operators, get transferred multiple times, and speak to dozens of representatives before I could get an answer. I’ve spent hours on the phone dealing with this. But we have a backup plan! My wife and I have money in savings for times such as these. We were faring well, for a while, using that; however, we have had several major financial obligations, and now our savings has taken a major hit.

So, here I sit, knee still not functioning well enough to return to work, finances unclear, and job security now in question. This is when I realized I’d made that blasted deal. In my heart, I was relying on money to get us through this storm instead of relying on God to make a way. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying not to store up food for the winter. By all means, be smart and prepare as well as you can. It’s not the outward action I am referring to; it is the inward beliefs. I made an inward deal with my job, with my disability policy, with my bank … with money. I was believing in and leaning on my own works. These works and I had an agreement: “If and when things get rough, you will get me through this. I will count on and trust that you will protect us throughout the course of this storm.” It was so subtle; I didn’t even realize it happened.

The crazy thing is that, through all of this, and despite my “deal” gone bad, God has truly kept us. Our bills are paid. God seemed to take our little and make it much. Our bellies are full, and I truly have peace in the middle of this storm. In fact, I have an uncommon surreal peace. I may have made that deal with money, but it is the Lord Who kept me. And not only is God keeping me, but teaching me how to lean on, depend on, contract with, and trust God at all times. Ain’t it like God to clip my knee in order to help me to learn to walk in faith?

Here’s the kicker: If I had been a scoffer of God’s Word, I don’t think I would have weathered this storm. If I belittled, dismissed, or attempted to explain away the power and authority of the Scriptures, instead of running to them for comfort and direction, I would not have survived, let alone thrived, during this trial. Isaiah 28:14-22 warns of the consequences of being a scoffer instead of trusting in the “tested stone” (a reference to Jesus). Truth be told, I am sometimes tempted to be a scoffer. I’m tempted to subscribe to theories that explain away miracles or de-authenticate the validity and power in Scripture. The rationale and explanations make sense to me. But, as author Madeline L’Engle so aptly stated, “The naked intellect is an extraordinarily inaccurate instrument.” There are dangers, told and untold, of using reason and logic alone to “rightly divide the Word of God.” Doing that almost made me forget Who I was dealing with.

I was dealing with the God of Moses and Abraham. The God who created the seas, and then parted them, extracting every drop of water from the dirt, so that the Israelites could walk across on dry land. The God who saved my son from Leukemia and broke my body to heal my soul. The God who both gives and takes away, because either way blessed be the name of the Lord. Lord, let me never try to lean on my own understanding, because I don’t like, approve of, or understand something. Let me always remember to humble myself and understand my place in Your universe. Let me use the gift of reason carefully, never letting it supersede Your wisdom and guidance. Let me always put my hope and trust in You, and never in the works of my own hands, so that You can get all the glory. Amen.

Thought for the day: What are the things that tempt you to scoff? Take them to God.

We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.