Weekly Devotion - #18

Read: I Peter 1:5-9

Not Understanding Why

"...lean not to thine own understanding..."--Proverbs 3:5

There are times in the life of Christians when we must learn to lean on the Lord for understanding. There are times we question, "Why God? I don't understand." During these times we must learn to trust the Lord and not our own understanding. This story of a mother and her deaf child is a good illustration of learning to trust in the Lord, and not our own understanding.

"Our daughter is deaf. In the state where we lived, there was just one school for deaf children, a residential school forty miles away. When she turned four, she was accepted into the school . She could not hear or talk and at that time knew no signs. It was her only chance for an education, but could we give her up?

"We got her ready for the trip unable to tell her where we were going or why. She packed quickly for she loved traveling but became quiet when she saw the rest of the family had no suitcases.

"As we brought in her clothes and pointed to a small bed that was to be hers, she became more anxious and distressed. She held on to us and began to cry. We felt our hearts break. We could not say, 'We love you. We'll be back in a couple of weeks. You will be coming home this summer.' It seemed to her we were leaving her with strangers. She did not understand why this awful thing was happening to her. Fighting back tears, we loosened her arms, gave her to the supervisor and walked out the door.

"It was perhaps the most completely unselfish, greatest act of love we ever did for her. Painful as it was to her, it was also heartbreaking for us. So, I am sure God must also sometimes wipe away a tear of pity for our struggles, saying, 'I wish you could see the reasons now, but you can't." [TGC]

THOT: When you don't understand why, understand who is in control and trust Him.

TODAY: Trust Him--as long as there is a God, there is hope.

This lesson is from  30 Heart Touching Devotions available from SWM.

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