Grains of Sand

Andrew and Suzanne Yesterday, the husband of a good friend of mine went home to be with the Lord. Andrew, a young husband and father of two pre-schoolers, fought his leukemia valiantly and with a demonstration of faith seldom seen. He was a scholar with, according to worldly wisdom, a long life of great contribution to society and to the Christian world ahead of him. God had other plans. Many will struggle with his death. Many will toss the “why?” question back and forth in frustration and anguish. I have no answers. But as I was reading Genesis 7 this morning I thought of Andrew’s wife, Suzanne. I thought of his family. I thought about others who are passing through deep, deep waters and perhaps struggling with those same questions. After Noah had built the ark and gathered all the animals into it, the Scriptures say: “ Then the Lord shut him in” (7:16). The skies opened up as they had never before been known to do. The fountains of the deep let go of the water reserved in them....

“ God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? ” —Numbers 23:19, NIV The story behind this statement comes courtesy of a somewhat wayward sorcerer by the name of Balaam. Balaam was asked by the King of Moab to curse Israel so that the Moabites could defeat them in battle. Balaam had already had a rather scary encounter with one of God’s angels when he tried to accommodate Israel’s enemies, so this time Balaam got it right. In verse 20 he explains to King Balak that God told him to bless Israel because that was his will and all Balaam could do was bless Israel. God’s purposes for his people were always benevolent ones even in their dark days of sin and the subsequent punishments that were necessary to get them back on track. Yesterday I had a mini-meltdown. It happens once in a while, especially when I am feeling overwhelmed or thwarted in my plans. Those are times when it ...