The wisdom of the scriptures is simplified when James tells us “you do not
have, because you do not ask.” He also goes on to tell us we “ask with wrong
motives.” Two simple truths, that we sometimes overlook in our situations.
Last week a woman was referred to me, a missionary in a foreign land. She was
home visiting, and had a son who had drug and alcohol problems. It had cost him
his job, his marriage, and he was living with another brother, causing division
between his wife and him. This woman was due to go back to the field, but
wanted to stay with her son here and help him, to get him into a program. I
asked about his father, she said he also was a drunk, they were divorced, and he
was living in another state, and had no contact with the family. She also said
his step father was also a drunk, do we see a problem here, a pattern, and was
also bad news. Her heart was breaking for her son, as any mother’s would, and
she was torn between the mission field and her family. I was firm, but told her
she needed to make a decision, and that her family came first. It seems she had
been shopping her situation, and had gotten multiple replies. I advised her to
quit shopping her problem, and to go with what God told her to do. She wanted
to stay, and I found out today she went back. With her husband, and if my
accounting was correct, this is #3. Which she didn’t tell me about. Which
still may not have affected my answer. But no matter what, her son’s problem
remains, she is miserable and in another country away from him, and even though
he is in his thirties, she is still his mom. Not sure which man he calls
father, dysfunction seems the rule here. I feel bad for all concerned, but
somehow I feel misled, if she didn’t tell me about husband #3, if there is one,
what else didn’t she tell me? Ask anyone, I ask a lot of questions, and I meant
well with my advice, but without all the answers, I cannot provide the best
one.
Sadly this is not an isolated event. The main thing not going to God, when
Jesus is referred to as the wonderful counselor. She had not asked the right
person, and in shopping her problem, only made it worse. Her motives may have
been pure, but with so many layers of problems, not having all the information,
or truth, no one can make an affective answer, let alone the right one. So why
do we by-pass God, and go right to man? God knows all things, is all loving, and
the wonderful counselor? And is free, why settle for anyone else? Yet we do in
many situations, thinking we might burden him, he is busy, but really we are
afraid we may not like his answer. It may cause us more initial grief until we
see the solution. God sees it different, you cannot have Easter without Good
Friday. She was facing a Good Friday situation, as we all do, and didn’t win
the victory at her cross, which Jesus tells us to lay down and pick up his, and
follow. And so she goes on....trying to minister to others, when she needs to
be ministered to first.
The Moody Blues once sang “why do we never get an answer, when we’re
knocking at the door, a thousand million questions, about hate and death and
war...” but the truth is we do get answers. We just don’t like them, and many
times the answer requires more questions, more answers until we can make a good
decision. When working with Land Rover it was not unusual for a customer to
come in with a complaint of “it does it all the time.” My first question was
always “is it doing it right now?” And the usual answer was “NO,” which led me
to more questions, “is it when it is cold, warm, high or low speeds, when do you
notice it most?” And without fail we always found the problem, because we asked
the right questions to diagnose it properly. We solved the problem, not cured
the symptom. God asks us questions too, but we evade the answer. He already
knows the answers, he just wants us to remind ourselves, to face him honestly,
so we can receive his loving answer. I cannot tell you if this woman made the
right decision, I can only tell you her son isn’t. And Lee Iacocca once wrote
“you don’t put two #2’s together to make a #1.” Seems a nursery rhyme reminds
us how all the King’s men, and his horses, couldn’t put a certain Mr. Dumpty
back together again either. It takes the wisdom from God, the ministering of
the holy spirit to guide. And when not guided by him, we are miserable all the
time. The noise of sin and dismay never go away. And as her son can attest to,
drugs and alcohol don’t make it any better, just worse. The pain may lessen for
a while, it doesn’t cure the cause.
Only God can tell you the cause, and the solution. We need to ask
honestly, then listen. This family wasn’t doing either, and so is being led
astray. Her motives seem pure, love for her son, but the problem of divorce and
remarriage seem to haunt her. She needs help too, and without the wisdom of the
Lord, no one else will ever help her. Love her yes, forgive her son yes, but
without God all else is futile. A wise man in scripture once asked “how can you
remove the splinter from another’s eye when you cannot see the plank in your
own?” And so you see there is no isolated sin, it affects everyone. And only
Jesus is the answer.
Today you can call out to God, and he will answer. Are you listening? Or
do you ask with wrong intentions, because you have been told already, and don’t
like the answer? Hate and death and war go on in every life, every day. Why
not choose, life, and life abundantly, and peace beyond understanding with
Jesus? No matter the question, he is the answer. And so now you have the
answer, Jesus. Are you listening? He who has an ear, let him hear, not he who
has a mouth let him speak. God has spoken, and provided the right answer. Your
choice to take it or not. And unlike the isolated noise from cars, God’s
answers are truly there all the time. He never rests, he never slumbers, so you
can. A good night’s sleep and all the rest. Now your question is.....
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com