Why Doesn't God Do Something?Sample

Then I understood

Lyn: At the end of the day, Sam, we don’t have all the answers. Only God does. The secret things belong to him, the things that are revealed belong to us. That’s what the Bible says (Deuteronomy 29:29). That’s why we need to hear from him.

Sam: That’s all very well. But how do you do that?

Lyn: Well, Asaph said it was when he went into God’s sanctuary—in other words, when he prayed and listened to the Word of God—that he understood. When was the last time you seriously prayed? Not just to ask for something but actually to spend some time with God.

Sam: Mm, well, actually…. We did say grace at Christmas dinner last year.

Lyn: Wow! After that, you and God must be really good mates. 

Sam: Okay, okay. Don’t be sarcastic. So how do I do it? How do I pray? How do I hear God’s voice? I’m really not much good at this sort of thing. 

Lyn: Maybe you can take a tip from the prophet Habakkuk. He chose a place where he would not be interrupted and then set himself to see what God would say. And God answered him (Hab 2:1-4). And at the end of his little book, there he is singing a song of praise and thanksgiving to God—even though he still didn’t have all the answers. 

Maybe you should give it a shot. But God has a reputation for not being in a hurry and you may have to wait a while before you hear anything. Perhaps you could begin by reading the Bible and then take it from there.

Sam: Fair enough, Lyn. But where do I start? It looks like a pretty long book. 

Lyn: Seeing we are talking about Habakkuk, why not start there? It’s only three short chapters. Then maybe slip over to the gospel of Mark and hear from Jesus himself. Here, let me show you… 

When we listen to God’s Word, we understand God’s will. Or to put it differently, if we want to know what God is doing, we need to listen to what he is saying.

Habbakuk 3:1-19; Philippians 4:6-7

What next? Which verse or verses really stand out to you from these passages? Why?