God Doesn’t Owe Us Anything
The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. – Psalm 28:7
The real test of our faith is whether we can be faithful when we don’t get what we want. David remains faithful. In 1 Chronicles 28, around verse 10, the text says David started praising God in the presence of the assembly after God had just told him he wouldn’t be building the temple like he wanted to.
Wow! God says “no,” and David is still praising Him. The Lord wants to know whether you can remain faithful when He says “no.” How instructive is that notion at a time when the prosperity gospel of the last 30 years has caused many to predicate their praise on stuff? When God doesn’t give David what he wants, David doesn’t start rehearsing his spiritual resume saying, “Look here God. I’ve done a lot of stuff for you. I left my father’s house, and killed that giant named Goliath. I led your people, served as their king…the least you could do is give me the desires of my heart.”
I’m sure many of us have had those kinds of conversations with God before. We have rehearsed our spiritual credentials and our religious bio as if God is obligated to move the way we want Him to move because of who we think we are in God.
It’s tempting to get frustrated with God when He didn’t move the mountain you wanted moved, He didn’t open the door you wanted opened, and He didn’t make the way you wanted made. If you’re honest you feel like you don’t deserve this neglect. But David shows us that spiritual maturity is being able to praise the Lord, despite the layoff, despite losing your home, despite the miscarriage, and despite not receiving the promotion or spouse.
Don’t ever walk out on God, like a disgruntled employee, when He says “no.” Don’t make your journey with God conditional upon God always saying “yes.” And don’t believe the lie that God owes you anything based on the fact that you’re following Him. He is not a genie. He is a Father who always provides the best for His children, even when His children don’t know what’s best for them.
The real test of our faith is whether we can be faithful when we don’t get what we want. David remains faithful. In 1 Chronicles 28, around verse 10, the text says David started praising God in the presence of the assembly after God had just told him he wouldn’t be building the temple like he wanted to.
Wow! God says “no,” and David is still praising Him. The Lord wants to know whether you can remain faithful when He says “no.” How instructive is that notion at a time when the prosperity gospel of the last 30 years has caused many to predicate their praise on stuff? When God doesn’t give David what he wants, David doesn’t start rehearsing his spiritual resume saying, “Look here God. I’ve done a lot of stuff for you. I left my father’s house, and killed that giant named Goliath. I led your people, served as their king…the least you could do is give me the desires of my heart.”
I’m sure many of us have had those kinds of conversations with God before. We have rehearsed our spiritual credentials and our religious bio as if God is obligated to move the way we want Him to move because of who we think we are in God.
It’s tempting to get frustrated with God when He didn’t move the mountain you wanted moved, He didn’t open the door you wanted opened, and He didn’t make the way you wanted made. If you’re honest you feel like you don’t deserve this neglect. But David shows us that spiritual maturity is being able to praise the Lord, despite the layoff, despite losing your home, despite the miscarriage, and despite not receiving the promotion or spouse.
Don’t ever walk out on God, like a disgruntled employee, when He says “no.” Don’t make your journey with God conditional upon God always saying “yes.” And don’t believe the lie that God owes you anything based on the fact that you’re following Him. He is not a genie. He is a Father who always provides the best for His children, even when His children don’t know what’s best for them.
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