Many times things happen in life that I have no idea why they happened or even how they happened. It is not until much later that things become clear and I begin to have a better understanding of why and how they happened. This truth is one that we need to grasp as it will make things a little easier as we go through life. There is no way we can understand everything that is going on around us.
This truth is revealed in Scripture as well. I was reading in John 12:1-19 and saw this truth revealed three times. The first mention of this truth is revealed when Mary anoints the feet of Jesus with precious perfume and wipes His feet with her hair. Judas complains that the perfume could have been sold and used to help the poor, but Jesus states that she was simply preparing His body for his death. At the time the disciples did not grasp the significance of the event or the teaching. In about 6 days they would understand the truth.
Another episode is revealed with John's comments about Judas. John states that Judas did not care about helping the poor, because He was a thief and was always taking money out of the money bag for his personal use. John is writing about one of his fellow disciples. Why would he make such a statement? If I were writing the story, I would have sprung all of this on my readers at a later date. Yet, John writing in retrospect of the event was able to explain the motives behind Judas' statement. He was able to look back at this event and realized that Judas showed signs early on of not really being a follower of Jesus.
I remember a story from my past about a good friend of mine from Seminary. He was probably my best friend at the time. We carpooled to seminary together and had some great conversations together. We talked about the Bible, about church, about our families and about things in general. Before we graduated from Seminary he accepted a pastorate in New Mexico and he asked me what I thought about the decision. I told him to wait and graduate first before he moved to New Mexico. I told him he would be all alone in the area with no support system and he would need that later. He did not heed my advice and moved to New Mexico with his family. In a very short time, my friend called me and told me he was having an affair and thought he was in love. He eventually resigned his church, divorced his wife and married this woman.
However, in retrospect, I saw some warning signs before this event occurred, but I was not able to be as discerning as I needed to be. I saw some struggles in his marriage early on and the move to New Mexico only brought more struggles to his marriage. I understood things much clearer at a later date. The same scenario played out with John as he looked back at this event with Judas.
One other episode is revealed in John 12 that highlights this fact. As Jesus is making his way into Jerusalem the people are praising him and celebrating his triumphal entry and John states that the disciples did not understand the significance of the event until after Jesus had been glorified. They looked back over this event and they began to understand it clearly.
Why do I tell you all of these things? There are times that things happen in our lives that we do not understand. These may be times of difficulties and struggles in our lives. I have been through some that I still do not understand and I am going through some now that are difficult as well. Perhaps it is happening to you also. Maybe you have lost a job and you cannot make sense of what is happening. Maybe you are struggling to pay your bills and it is causing other problems in your life. Perhaps changes are happening around you and you cannot understand what is happening. My word of advice to you is to not lose hope or lose your faith in God. There will come a time when you will understand everything better. You may never fully grasp why something happened, but you will understand it better by and by. Do not let the circumstances of your life determine your future. Do not throw your hands up in the air and give up just because you do not understand what is happening in your life.
Use these times to draw closer to God and trust in Him more. God did not wake up one morning and realize that you were in a struggle and there was nothing He could do about it. He is always in control and He is always able to do more than you can even imagine. You keep being faithful and you keep trusting in God to work all things out for the good. The things happening to you can make you bitter or better, but only you can make that decision.
Years ago one of my professors said "It is not what happens to you that determines what happens to you. It is what happens to what happens to you that determines what happens to you." Think about that and decide today that even though you may not understand what is happening, you are determined to come out better because of it.
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