Wow. Greg hit some black on ice on his way to work early Monday morning and ended up hitting the guard rails on both sides of the off ramp. The car is totaled. But Greg is in good health. He had a slight headache the first day, but that decreased yesterday. He has a bruise on his neck and a cut on his leg. But I'm so happy he's ok. The morning it happened, I just kept touching his face and telling him how thankful I am that he wasn't more badly hurt.
Of course, I have to take it to the next level of analyzation. My first response is "God is good and He protected Greg." A friend of mine emailed and said "Good to know the angels are still at their posts." Another friend said "God protected him." I do believe these are all true statements. But I feel selfish claiming them. It reminds me of my mom's comments about my Aunt Jennie recovering so well from her bypass surgery: "God saw fit to see her through the surgery, God is good, etc." While all of those things are true, I just wonder about those people whose lives He DIDN'T save. I wonder about those surgeries He DIDN'T see fit to have a successful outcome. On the other hand, I want to give credit where credit is due and tell people that I thank God that Greg is still alive and well.
So I guess the crux of the issue for me comes down to why. Why does He save some and not others? Why can I claim victory and blessings when my coworker's son died of cancer on his wedding day? And aren't we blessed when He DOESN'T answer our prayers as we want?
The why questions are the worst as far as keeping me up at night. But one thing I am sure of is that God's not afraid of my honesty. He knows me. He knows I'm thinking these things anyway so I may as well say them (or in this case, type them). Also, I know He is in control and that I may never figure out "why" things happen. Maybe the only response is to just be thankful.
Of course, I have to take it to the next level of analyzation. My first response is "God is good and He protected Greg." A friend of mine emailed and said "Good to know the angels are still at their posts." Another friend said "God protected him." I do believe these are all true statements. But I feel selfish claiming them. It reminds me of my mom's comments about my Aunt Jennie recovering so well from her bypass surgery: "God saw fit to see her through the surgery, God is good, etc." While all of those things are true, I just wonder about those people whose lives He DIDN'T save. I wonder about those surgeries He DIDN'T see fit to have a successful outcome. On the other hand, I want to give credit where credit is due and tell people that I thank God that Greg is still alive and well.
So I guess the crux of the issue for me comes down to why. Why does He save some and not others? Why can I claim victory and blessings when my coworker's son died of cancer on his wedding day? And aren't we blessed when He DOESN'T answer our prayers as we want?
The why questions are the worst as far as keeping me up at night. But one thing I am sure of is that God's not afraid of my honesty. He knows me. He knows I'm thinking these things anyway so I may as well say them (or in this case, type them). Also, I know He is in control and that I may never figure out "why" things happen. Maybe the only response is to just be thankful.
4 comments:
what an awful sight!!!!! I'm surprised Greg didn't get more serious injuries. yipes! xo
Well put, Charlotte.
I was taught that when someone's life in in question, that all we can pray for is that they accept their path--not for healing or recovery, because that presumes we know better than God what is best for the person in question, and also because oftentimes we want people to get better or not die for our sake, not theirs. Maybe their time has come, whether it seem untimely to us or not, but it isn't up to us to decide. So we ask that God help the person in question see their path before them, and that they have the courage to walk it, and that we on the outside accept that person's path as well. And that could mean health as well as death. That also means we all have to sit in the truth of the mortality of ourselves and the people we love, and face the fact that we most likely won't know when its our time to die.
I don't know. I also don't believe in the concept that God is good--God is bigger than and beyond good and evil; God IS.
All that being said, I'm very thankful that Greg is okay too. Phew.
Thank you, Jen, for your insights. Your opinions matter to me. Ultimately, I believe that we pray for God's will - whatever that may be - and we leave it "in His hands." That being said, it ain't easy! So I agree with you wholeheartedly that we don't pray for health, recovery, or death. (in some cases, the person is suffering so much, you just want them to have rest). We pray for God's will. It's just in my humanity, I'm prone to want what *I* want, when I want, how I want. Well, you get the picture.
I love you and I'm so thankful that you've shared with me!
dear darling daughter ~ God picks & chooses who He's gonna save & who He has other plans for at a particular time. Maybe He "saw fit" OTHER things for those other people. Instead of saving them, He chose other reasons to have them go through what they're going through. To get them closer to Him maybe? even if it is to join Him in His Kingdom. He answers our prayers according to His plans. I don't know... just some more thoughts on the subject.xo
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