God Guides, Part 4:
Why Worry About God's will for the Small Stuff?
In the last three parts to God Guides, we told the story of how God guided
us in each step of the way for the purchase of a kitten. But wait a minute.
That was a lot of effort and heartache! Why didn't we just go out and choose
one? Why bother God with the small stuff?
Judges 19-21 tells the gruesome story of a man whose wife was killed in the
city of Gibeah, by Benjamites. Now an entire series could be written on the
events that led up to this brutal gang rape and murder, but suffice is to
say, it was a inhumane story with fault being on all sides. In the end, the
man actually cut his wife into 12 pieces and sent a piece of her body out
into each of the tribes of Israel, and the message was clear: "No such
deed has been done or seen from the day that the children of Israel came up
from the land of Egypt until this day. Consider it, confer, and speak up!"
(Judg 19:30 NKJV)
The Israelites banded against Benjamin that day and went up against them.
Interestingly, they were not successful on their first two attempts, losing
30,000 men. But in the end, they annihilated Benjamin, killing men, women
and children alike, until all that remained of this proud tribe of
left-handers were 600 men.
Then Israel repented of their anger. In fact, they became very despondent,
because there was now one less tribe in Israel! So they went out and
annihilated Jabesh Gilead, killing all inhabitants except for 400 virgins.
These they gave in marriage to the men left in Benjamin. But there were
still 200 men without wives, so these were instructed to "steal" from the
virgins who came up to dance before the Lord.
In the end, we see how one atrocity led to another. And another. And
another!
So what does this have to do with asking God about every step of the way?
Just this: The people of Israel DIDN'T ask God for guidance in every step of
the way! They initially asked Him if they should go up against Benjamin, and
the Lord's answer was: "Go up against him." (Judg 20:23 NKJV) But
notice that God didn't tell the people to annihilate an entire tribe. He
just simply said, "Go up against him".
Why would God say this at all?
Because the people of Gibeah had committed a horrific crime. When Israel
initially asked them to send out the perpetrators for punishment, the entire
tribe sided with the gang rapers. The people needed to be punished to help
them understand that this was not an appropriate way of acting. But if God
had intended the entire tribe to be wiped out, He would have specified this,
for there are other references in the Bible where God DID specify total
annihilation of a people group.
After this initial inquiry of the Lord, it is of note that the people never
again asked God for guidance. On their own, they annihilated Benjamin. They
immediately regretted their actions and set out to right the situation. But
two wrongs don't make a right, and in the end, one atrocity led to another
and another.
How much bloodshed and heartache could have been prevented if the people had
simply stopped to ask God's guidance each step of the way!
Friends, when we stop to ask God's opinion and guidance in every decision we
make, we are assured that what will transpire will be 100% God's will. But
more than this, we can ensure that we aren't just trying to correct wrongs,
and in the process, making even bigger mistakes!
Our little kitten turned out to be exactly the right pet for us. She came to
us at exactly the right time, and she is 100% what we hoped she would be,
and more. She loves the dog. She has learned to not scratch the furniture.
She comes to meet us at the door when we get home. She loves every one of
us, and comes to us in turns, as if to say "No one needs to be jealous!" She
isn't finicky. She isn't mouthy. She is so gentle with her play that it's
hard to believe she hasn't been declawed. And the list could go on. But
then, who's surprised that we ended up with the perfect kitten? After all,
God led us to her!
This is the last lesson on God Guides in this series. If you have missed any
of the first 3 lessons, they are published online at
www.scripturalnuggets.org/folder10/god_guides.htm . Or you can email me
at
submissions@scripturalnuggets.org .
In His love,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart, Speech-Language Pathologist, mother of two
teens, Author and Moderator for The Nugget, a tri-weekly internet
newsletter, and Scriptural Nuggets, a website devoted to Christian
devotionals and inspirational poems,
www.scripturalnuggets.org,
with Answers2Prayer Ministries,
www.Answers2Prayer.org.