Good Morning Friends,
“Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, ‘We
are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about
the Son of Man will be fulfilled. He will be handed over to the Gentiles. They
will mock him, insult him, spit on him, flog him and kill him. On the third day
he will rise again.’ The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning
was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about.” (Luke
18:31-34)
One phrase in this passage stands out for me:
“The disciples did not understand any of this.”
That is a comforting phrase for me because
there are many things in my life and in the world I do not understand. I don’t
understand what God is trying to accomplish. I don’t understand how they show
God’s love and compassion. I don’t understand how God is using them to build
His children into the image of Jesus. I just plain don’t understand a lot of
things.
I have a friend who had lympoma. I don’t
understand the why of that.
I have another friend who has breast cancer. I
don’t understand the why of that.
I have a friend who has ongoing health problems
that defy explanation and treatment. I don’t understand the why of that.
I have friends who have lost spouses and
children and parents to death. I don’t understand the whys of those things.
A tornado hit the city where I went to college
– Joplin. It killed hundreds and did unimaginable damage. I don’t understand
the why of that.
I could go on and on with my list. There are
many things that I don’t understand. God hasn’t prevented any of them, perhaps
in some way they are a part of His plan.
The earliest and closest followers of Jesus
didn’t understand, either. Here’s something else that becomes evident as their
lives unfolded – despite their not understanding, they trusted Jesus and kept
following Him.
That’s my decision, too. There are many things
I do not understand, but I choose to trust Jesus and keep following Him.
His, by Grace, Steve
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