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Recently there was a moment I sensed a bit of a perplexing situation which was going to come.  I knew it was coming but I was having unrest about how to handle it when it did come because I didn't know what the Lord wanted me to do when it did come.  What should I do to stay within God's will?  What should I say?  I was burdened about what to do in the upcoming situation, and perplexed, and so I prayed about it.  I prayed several times and each time I heard: silence.

 

I still had no idea.  I wanted to please God, but just wasn't sure, what was the right thing?  Was my motive right if I leaned this way?  Is it wise if I go the other way?

 

I was reminded of two times that Jesus prepared the disciples about how to handle future circumstances. In those two instances He used two very different ways, giving them different details and guidance about what was to come in the future.

 

#1  He told them what was going to happen, and guided them on exactly what they needed to do.

 

Luke 19:29-32    When He approached Bethphage and Bethany, near the mount that is called Olivet, He sent two of the disciples, 19:30   saying, "Go into the village ahead of you; there, as you enter, you will find a colt tied on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here. 19:31   "If anyone asks you, 'Why are you untying it?' you shall say, 'The Lord has need of it.'" 19:32   So those who were sent went away and found it just as He had told them."

 

Sometimes God does this - He tells us what's coming, and gives us the word for it.  He told the disciples where to find a donkey, and what to say when they were questioned.  They weren't worried about someone seeing them: they knew exactly what to say, and had His exact reassurance it would be ok.

 

 

Yes, sometimes God does this and shows us just what's coming, but if we're honest, much of the time it's not like this.  Often, it's more like Mark 13:11:

 

#2.  He doesn't tell us what's going to happen at all, or when.  We just have to trust and lean on one promise alone: God will provide (Prov 3:5-6, Matt 6:33-34).

 

Here's the other example of how Jesus prepared the disciples for the future, and it's very different than His first way:

 

Mark 13:11   "When they arrest you and hand you over, do not worry beforehand about what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but it is the Holy Spirit."

 

The disciples knew they'd be arrested (Just like we know that we will definitely have trials in the future, and some which are very painful and difficult), but unlike #1, they didn't know WHEN it would come or what God's will was for them in how to respond to it, or what to say.  Jesus just said, "It will be given to you IN THAT HOUR."

 

In my experience of my life, the vast majority of life is God guiding us and providing for us the words and the wisdom, IN THAT HOUR or in that moment. This is God's usual method. It's not some new, clever truth, but He reminds us of Scripture and Biblical principles and teaching that we need just then which we've learned sometime before that point.

 

This encourages me to remember: it doesn't matter that I don't know the future, and I don't know what to do in the future. God will provide.

 

I have feared, and been anxious, wanting to know if I'm in God's will.  But Jesus was never frantic about "What will I say? What will I do?"  He just knew - the Father will provide.

 

Question: If Jesus' highest goal was doing God's will, why is it that He was never anxious about whether He'd be able to discern if He was in it, or if He'd know what to do to please His Father?

 

It's because along with His perfect passion for the Father's will, He also had perfect trust that the Father was the One who would help Him do it.  Our Father will provide.

 

I believe much of the time we ourselves can have the passion for God's will, but lack the latter part of trusting that God is so good and powerful that He Himself will be the One to help.

 

God wants us to have the strength to be able to simply lean on: "God is faithful.  He will provide.  Something. Some way.  Despite myself and all my weakness and flaws, He will provide!"

 

Our Father will provide.

 

Praise God.

 

Back to my personal situation I mentioned: Ultimately God comforted me with essentially method #2.  He didn't tell me exactly what to do beforehand, but He spoke to me: "Just pray now, and trust I'll work it out.  You don't need to know anymore for right now."  That gave me peace.  The situation later came, and it went.  And everything worked out.  My Father provided.  He is so faithful.

 

GOD ALMOST NEVER TELLS US THE FUTURE

I was then meditating on the question of, why can't God comfort us by just showing us what's coming? Why wouldn't He comfort us by telling us HOW and WHEN He will provide?  It's very, very rare that He does that.  If God sent an angel to us at nighttime and said, "This is how God is going to work out this situation" we'd have perfect peace instantly.  God sent an angel to Mary and even then the angel didn't explain much.  I realized something that changed my perspective on why God doesn't usually work instantly or at least reassure us by telling us exactly what will happen.

 

WHY GOD RARELY COMFORTS US BY TELLING US THE FUTURE

If we can only be comforted by knowing the future, then we would be drawing our comfort from EASE rather than God Himself.

We would be leaning on easy circumstances for our comfort, peace and rest. In other words: we would be replacing faith in God's love and goodness with the idol of 'knowing'. This is the tree of knowledge all over again, rather than the tree of life.  It's replacing God Himself with an idol.

 

Both in the old covenant, and the new covenant, the one thing that has always been what pleases God is: faith in Him alone (Heb 11).

 

"Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." John 20:29

 

DISCIPLESHIP & A STORY

As disciples, one of the main ways we die to self is by letting God do things His way, in His time, and not requiring Him to show us what He's doing.

 

I heard a story of a man who decided one day that he would make his life decision whether to believe in God or not.  He went to the beach and looked up and said, "Ok, God - reveal yourself to me and let me know you're real."  When he didn't see any lightning from heaven, he explained "That was the day I learned there is no God."  A godly man heard this story and said, "No, that's the day a spoiled child didn't get his way."

 

I believe the greatest lesson a disciple can learn in this life is to trust in God's love and prove that trust/belief by making no demands on Him.  When people asked Jesus "what shall we do?"  He consistently said one simple thing: "Believe in Me" (John 6:29). He was always so disappointed when people demanded Him to do miracles before they'd believe.  The heart that totally trusts in God's love is the same one that says, "Your will be done" every time.

 

May we have such a faith and boldness that we would leap through life and into eternity doing nothing but clinging to Jesus. And that we would boldly face every circumstance like that now too, like with the bold attitude David had as he faced Goliath.  We know the story, but the test will come to us soon (or is already here) to see if we will cling to the same faith that simply says, "God loves us and who can stand against Him? God will provide, so we will face the future boldly."

 

And related to this, one last verse the Lord laid on my heart, is that His calling for me as a disciple is to "smile at the future."

Strength in the Lord is to "smile at the future".

 

CONCLUSION

For every single one of us, probably over 99% of our future circumstances are unknown.  But we don't need to know them because we know the One who holds our future in His hands. Some things we sense are coming, some we know are coming eventually.  Others we have no idea about. But really it doesn't matter how or when they come. Because God will provide and give us what we need to come through and not just to come through it but to overcome through it - and give Him glory!