Have you ever asked God, “Why?” Few people there are who haven’t looked toward heaven and cried out in despair asking God to explain Himself. But as we learn from the book of Job, He doesn’t always do so, although He has promised to be with us no matter what may come our way. While this is a great comfort, we still yearn for explanations that we probably wouldn’t accept anyway.
But instead of asking, “Why God,” what about asking, “Why, God, have You blessed me so much?” Some of my friends have raised that question to me numerous times. Now they have not, mind you, lived a charmed life. This couple has had their share of broken relationships and challenging illnesses, not to mention an accident that landed one of them in ICU for several weeks hooked up to all manner of life support. Nevertheless, they dwell not on the devastating losses, but on God’s wonderful gifts including life itself.
Occasionally they’ve rephrased it as, “Why has God been so good to us?” This question carries the same sentiment and highlights God’s favor that we all enjoy. A popular Christian song declares, “His goodness is running after… me,” and who among us hasn’t sensed that at some time or the other in our life?
Poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow penned the line oft-quoted, “Into each life some rain must fall,” recognizing that in a fallen universe no one is exempt from pain. But Wadsworth is most known for His Christmas carol, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day,” in which he expresses his grief for the “rain” of losing his wife to a horrible fire, of his son’s severe injury in the Civil War, and of the tragedy of war itself. In the fourth verse, however, he turns a corner and celebrates the fact that, “God is not dead, nor doth He sleep! The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, with peace on earth, good will to men!”
If we dwell only on the negative, we will be overwhelmed with anguish and fail to see the many blessings God gives. Because we’ve all sinned and violated God’s love and God’s laws, we all deserve a miserable life on earth followed by the eternal fires of Hell. The surprise and shock should not come when something bad happens in our lives, but that anything good ever does. Behold the mercy and grace of God!
At Thanksgiving, we tend to be more aware of God’s numberless blessings as we pause to consider them, as well we should. But how might it change our attitude and our outlook if we did so all year long? My late brother, Jimmie, when asked how he was doing, often responded with, “Better than I deserve!” What tremendous gratitude is enveloped within this powerful insight and anyone that fails to comprehend its inescapable truth is likely an ungrateful and miserable person.
The composer commands us in Psalm 107:1 to, “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.” Contemplating these words, Martyn Lloyd-Jones observed, “Do you know that if you ever find yourself in hell, it will be for this reason, that you have not praised God? Now, forget all about sin for a moment. Forget all about yourself and your life. Here is the first thing: are you praising God? You were meant to! You were created in order that you might do so. God is to be praised because He is what He is and because He is God, and I know of no more terrible sin than just failure to praise Him.” Every human being’s first and highest priority is to give praise and thanks to our Creator, Savior, Provider, and Sustainer and may we never fail in this regard!
As we celebrate Thanksgiving again next Thursday, may we turn our “Why God” questions into, “Why, God, have you been so good to me?” Thanksgiving blessings, George