Wrestling with God Through the Valley

Part #1
    Jacob wrestling in man to man combat with God. Hannah pouring out pleas at the temple.  David crying out to God in desperation.  These are just a few of the biblical examples we see of men and women who grappled with God.  Although Jacob alone can claim the fame of a physical brawl, there are others who did the same in a different manner.

I say to God, my rock: “Why have you forgotten me?
Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?

Psalms 42:9  

~

Hannah answered, "I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord"

1 Samuel 1:15

      Wrestling with God isn't always physical.  There is a spiritual aspect that is seeking to understand or obtain something from God with great effort and urgency.  Wrestling with God goes beyond asking by longingly 'pouring out our soul' before the Lord and 'wrestling' to understand the 'whys?' of life. Jacob pleaded for a blessing, Hannah for a baby and David for deliverance.  God alone had the answer and God alone could provide what each one was lacking.  They wrestled God through the valley.  Do we?

      Just like any sporting event, there are rules and boundaries that must be respected and maintained.  In the spiritual endeavor we engage in, the first guideline is this: Don't question who God says He is but believe by faith.
     All to often we allow our life circumstances to define who God is rather than allowing God to define our life circumstances.  Looking at the child terminally ill with cancer, we must not say, "God must not be a God of love."   Rather, we should ask,  "What does God say about who He is and the suffering around us?"  

God is:

• Love
• Faithful
• Sovereign 
• Merciful
• "Someone" we can trust

Suffering/Death is:

• A result of sin
• A punishment for sin
• The enemy

But God is:

• The victor of sin and death
• "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?"                                                (1 Corinthians 15:55)
• The One who will wipe every tear away and put an end to death
•  "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” (Revelations 21:14) 

   We must establish in our minds that God's Word is true and what God says about Himself in His Word is true.  The suffering we see is not a reflection of God's character but rather a reflection of our sin and need for a Savior.  Examine Christ on the cross and you will find the picture of who our God is.  If you call God's Word into question, there will be no hope of understanding for only in the knowledge and understanding of who God is can we find hope in the midst of great loss and grief.
       To lift a fist and to lift open hands toward God are two very different things.  A fist is not willing to receive the healing ointment of grace and understanding, while the second is ready, willing and longing for it.  Come humbly to the throne of grace. Realizing that we are nothing and He is everything might be starting at square A, but that is where healing must start.  
      'Hopeless' is the title that some might stamp across your circumstances .  I am sorry, they are wrong.  There is no such things as hopelessness when God is your redeemer.  Why?

But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.

“The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.”

Lamentations 3:21-24

     Where else are we supposed to find hope if it is not in the One who will one day put an end to death?  He has established His steadfast love and His mercies are new every morning.  Though there be weeping in the night, joy comes in the morning! Why? Because the Lord who is Creator, Redeemer, Savior, and Friend, is our God, therefore let us hope in Him.  There is hope because there is God.  Please don't allow your sorrow to turn you away from the only One who can give you hope and heal your heart.  Trust Him.  He is able.
    1...2...3... We have a winner!  Be assured, in the end of the match God will come out on top, not because you have been defeated but because when God wins, His children also win.  He must come out on top for He is the one who is sovereign and has all understanding.  If in the end we are not more humbled and submitted to our heavenly Father, but are otherwise convinced that we have mastered Him or know better than the creator of the universe, the match has gone seriously wrong.  Some choose to walk away from God when trials come and pain causes them to question.  That is not a good place to be, that is not a safe place to be.  Only God can bring hope, only God can bring understanding and a deeper dependance on Him.  Let us trust our God and hope in Him.