Messages in a Mess

There are so many messages that we can get from the "mess" that's happening in America today and around the world. Without a doubt, there are a myriad of voices speaking and we can turn to any channel, podcast, YouTube video, Tweet, Facebook post, blog, Instagram, or TicToK to hear someone's perspective and opinion. But, I don't want to hear just anyone's voice - I want to hear God's voice.

Maybe, like me, you've been trying to figure out what's going on or what's gone wrong with our society today. Perhaps you've been praying and seeking God for answers. His answers are not far from us - just pick up the Bible. Perhaps you've been praying about the situation in the Ukraine and the war that Putin insists on engaging in. The visual images that we see on the news are definitely disturbing. Citizens having to flee leaving everything that they own to find refuge in foreign places. Sirens, bombs, and missiles flying overhead are not things that many of us have ever personally experienced in our lifetime. At the least, world events should have taken our minds off of our own small problems. Yet, God often wants to send us messages when we are surrounded by such a mess.

Recently, I was reminded of the importance of "listening prayer." You see, sometimes we talk too much. Prayer is most definitely important, but we don't often take the time to LISTEN for God's response. Just as God longs to hear us cry out to Him with our requests, supplications, petitions, and thanksgiving, He also desires to answer us. Communication is a two-way process. Often I find myself on the end of God's grace, and then I remember when I spoke with Him (prayed) about the situation.

I believe that God responds quicker than we realize if we just stop and listen after we pray. Many times, God will provide a scripture, an image, a vision or even a dream when we get quiet in His presence. The Holy Spirit brought to my attention the experience of Job after I had an "ask the LORD" kind of moment early one morning. Without any provocation, Job found himself right in the middle of a mess. He endured significant suffering, yet his perspective on God did not change. "The LORD gave me what I had, and the LORD has taken it away. Praise the name of the LORD." (Job 1:21).

While we know the backstory of Job's experience, Job did not. Neither did his friends who grieved with him. Yet, they became sure of their opinions of why he was suffering. Elihu, however, who is neither called a friend nor enemy of Job, speaks with clarity when he says, "For God is greater than any human being. So why are you bringing a charge against him? Why say he does not respond to people's complaints? For God speaks again and again, though people do not recognize it. He speaks in dreams, in visions of the night when deep sleep falls on people as they lie in their beds. He whispers in their ears and terrifies them with warnings. He makes them turn from doing wrong; he keeps them from pride. He protects them from the grave, from crossing over the river of death." (Job 33:13-18).

Maybe God was trying to give Job a message through Elihu's speech, but the distracting mess and words from his "so-called" friends drowned out his voice. Elihu reminded Job of God's power. "Look, God is all-powerful. Who is a teacher like him? No one can tell him what to do, or say to him, 'you have done wrong.' Instead glorify his mighty works, singing songs of praise. Everyone has seen these things though only from a distance. Look, God is greater than we can understand." (Job. 36:22-26)

While Elihu's message resonates with strength, it is God's voice at the end of the Book of Job that captures my attention. "Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorant words?" (Job 38:2). God goes on to ask Job a series of questions that display how little Job knew of the mysteries of God's ways. God reminded Job that even in the middle of a mess, God is Sovereign - He is in control.

We can take solace from the Book of Job even as we pray for our brothers and sisters in the Ukraine and all around the world. We can delight in the peace of those we see singing in the subway tunnels about God's faithfulness. As disciples of Christ, we can never let the "mess" overtake the MESSAGES that God longs for us to hear. The greatest message is that God has sent a DELIVERER, and his name is Yeshua.