"Jesus replied, "You don't understand now what I am doing, but someday you will." (John 13:7 NLT)
You know that I love about the fourth decade of life? I have history. I have this amazing past performance record with the living God. I personally possess testimony after testimony; a myriad of times and ways He’s come through for me. I’ve got war stories where it looked like utter failure, but in the end, He got the glory. I’ve seen seen Him heal, restore hope, rescue and redeem. It’s not always immediate. Honestly, it’s rarely been on my time table, but I have first-hand witnessed enough things work out for good that I can trust Him for all the rest.
Today’s words are from Jesus, the night before He was betrayed. He was bent down before His disciples, washing their feet and serving them to the very end. Even then, He knew full well that Friday would include the cross and a thousand questions.
“You don’t understand… but someday you will.”
Rob and I have landed hard in a season of don’t understand. But this morning, I’m locking eyes with our Savior – the King who stoops to wash the grime of the world off our feet – and I’m receiving His personal invitation to trust. I don’t need to understand it just yet. All I need today is stay near to Him. I am determined to walk this hard path engaged in intimate conversation, friends on the road to Emmaus together. I’m going to let my unanswered questions keep me in close proximity to my Messiah. I’ve learned, traveling tough terrain can actually knit hearts together at a whole new level.
The vast majority of the disciples stuck with their Savior through the things they didn’t understand. It wasn’t immediately or even completely, but sometime on the far side of the cross, they each got a glimpse of what He was accomplishing. Their understanding grew the further they followed. They learned to devote their existence to Him and by the time they made it Home, they each had a firm comprehension of the cross.
We can let our questions shake us off the path of faith or we can allow them to tug us even closer. My recent stint in education has served to remind me; growing students stay after. They wrestle through tutorials and homework lab. They keep raising their hand and working the problem with their eraser and pencil until the missing information clicks into place and lightbulb flicks on. We prevail on the hard path of discipleship because we’ve traded the world for the precious pearl found in Christ alone.
"Yes, Father, it pleased You to do it this way." (Matthew 11:26 NLT)
Be encouraged, dear friend. Our hard path pleases the Father. Our willingness to walk a road in faith that we don’t fully understand actually blesses heaven. Our discipline despite our feelings actually delights Him. Stay the course. Plod on, plod on. Keep trusting what you can’t quite explain. One day soon, He’ll receive all the glory.
O Lord, we don’t like hard paths with hearts full of questions. But today we realize the alternative: the abandonment of our faith. And we recommit to what we don’t quite comprehend. We also recognize that we won’t walk alone. The unknown man on the way to Emma’s is You, and You will lead us toward understanding. You will win out over all circumstances. Keep us close, Lord. May we stay in step with You as we make our way through our pain, confusion and unanswered questions. Strengthen our resolve as we continue to walk Home with You. Amen.