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Last week, I talked about one of the things I don’t want to hear Jesus say: “Did I not tell you so.” My mind must be still thinking about things I don’t want to hear Jesus say because I have another one this week; “Because I said so.”
For the most part, I was pretty good as a child. I didn’t get in a lot of trouble, although I had my moments. There was that one time when I was about five years old, and I wanted to visit my friend who lived across the street. We didn’t live in a subdivision where the roads weren’t busy; we lived on a busy main highway. Since I was only five, crossing the street wasn’t allowed, but I wanted to see my friend. I crossed the street safely, but when I got to my friend’s house, her mom wanted to know who had brought me over. She marched me back home to my very unpleased mother, and I can’t remember all the details, but I do remember there were a lot of words like, “don’t you EVER do that again.”
My five-year-old brain couldn’t understand the danger, so I kept asking why. Why can’t I cross the road by myself? Why can’t I go and see my friend? Why are you so mean to me? In exasperation, my mom finally said, “Because I said so!”
My mom must have liked that explanation because she used it a lot later as I was growing up. When I wanted to go to a concert, and she said I was too young, I wanted to know why. When I was fourteen and wanted to go on a car date, I wanted to know why I couldn’t go. When I could drive and my friends asked me to take them home from practice, I wanted to know why she wouldn’t let me. BECAUSE I SAID SO was always the answer, and it never failed to leave me frustrated and confused.
Because I said so was the end of the discussion. No more explanations were given; she had the last word on the situation. She had the authority to say yes or no and didn’t have to explain herself to me. But that didn’t keep me from pleading, whining, and asking why a few hundred times.
Looking back, I can now see that my mother came from a place of love. She saw the danger, either real or perceived, and she was trying to protect me. I needed to have trusted her judgment about the matter instead of pouting and shouting, “you’re so mean!”
How many of us are guilty of this when things don’t go as planned? Life has a way of throwing lots of curveballs at us, and I’ve found myself asking the Lord, WHY? Why did my friend cut me out of her life? Why did COVID happen? Why can’t my friend have children? Why did my loved one have to die? Why did you let the mass shooting happen? Why is my business suffering? Why did I lose my job? Why is my marriage on the rocks? Why, why, why???
You might have asked yourself these questions, or your questions might be different. Most of the time, I don’t expect an answer; I need to vent. The answers to my questions can only come from the Lord, and I can hear Him say, “Because I said so!” The Lord can see what I can’t see, and like my mom, He is coming from a place of love and protection. When I find myself pleading, whining, and asking why with the Lord, I find the five verses below helpful.
Jeremiah 29:11
11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Proverbs 3:5
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
Psalms 112:7
7 They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord.
Isaiah 12:2
2 Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.”
Isaiah 43:2
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
I may never know the answers to my questions, but I’m okay with that. The Lord is my Savior, my Protector, and the one in whom I trust. If He says so, then His will be done!
To God Goes The Glory!
Have A Blessed Day!
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