Why and Because – Devotion for
From the time that I spent as a youth minister, I learned a lot of little games that can be played or activities that can be done with a group. One particular activity that was entertaining was something called “Why and Because.” Everyone in the group would be handed 2 slips of paper, and on one slip was the word “Why?” and the second slip was the word “Because . . .” The participants were then instructed to write a “why” question on the “why” sheet (don’t ask why), and then they were to answer their “why” question on the “because” sheet. For example, they may write “Why do I have to eat vegetables?” with the answer being “Because it is good for me.” Once everyone is finished, all the “why” slips would be collected, as would the “because” slips, and then they would be redistributed around the room randomly so that each participant would receive someone’s “why” and someone else’s “because.” Hilarity ensued as we would go around the room and read out loud each slip, and would often end up with things such as: “Why do I have to eat vegetables? Because I was driving too fast.” Ok – so that one isn’t so funny, but trust me, if you try this with a group, you will really get some messed up answers.
Sometimes in life it seems like God gives us messed up answers to the questions we ask. Doesn’t it seem sometimes as if we cry out to God with questions, only to receive some of the strangest responses? Technically God’s answers are correct answers, they just don’t always seem to match up with the questions we have in mind. Recently I met someone who had been experiencing a difficult period in their life, and this individual explained that he just couldn’t understand why God wouldn’t help him. As we talked, I inquired about his prayer life and his walk with God, and he told me that he quit praying because he got tired of not getting an answer. That discussion really reminded me that many times if we don’t get the answer from God that we want, we treat it is as if we’ve not actually gotten an answer at all.
This morning as I prayed over Psalm 37, I was struck the comparisons that David lays out between the righteous and the wicked – what God will do for the righteous; what God will do to the wicked. He constantly holds on to the hope of the redemption of the righteous. He closes the psalm with these verses: “But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in time of trouble. The Lord helps them and delivers them; He delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in Him” (Psalm 37:39-40). As I read that passage, a “why” and “because” comes to mind. Why does the Lord help and deliver the righteous? Because they take refuge in Him. When we find ourselves in those times of trials and questioning of God, when we find those times where none of the answers seem to make sense if we receive any at all, remember that the Lord will help and deliver you because you take refuge in Him.
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