Faith Clarifies Sovereignty

Solitude. There are times when I crave it, never more than when I left for vacation back on the 10th of July. Being the husband of a wonderful wife, the father of three active daughters, and a pastor of a growing church leaves little extended down time.

We headed east about 1000 miles and met some of Melanie's family at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. We had fantastic days on the beach with highs in the upper 80's and a 5-10 mph consistent breeze almost every day. The Atlantic's water temperature was perfect.

One morning in particular was bliss. Melanie had taken her mom out shopping, all three of my girls were body surfing with their Uncle Bob's family (everybody should have an Uncle Bob, by the way), leaving me all alone on the beach for quite a long time. I donned my headphones, started listening to some classical guitar music, and took a barefooted stroll in the surf up and down the beach in both directions.

One can't help but become reflective as one looks into the vastness of the ocean while listening to classical guitar music. I don't know how far I walked, or even how long I was gone. All I know is that I thoroughly enjoyed every second.

After I got back to my beach chair, I kept processing the thought I had written about a week before as I wrote about prayer. Three simple words kept ringing in my head: faith clarifies sovereignty. My father-in-law prompted my thinking with a discussion of land prices on Myrtle Beach. A friend of his had purchased a couple of acres many years ago that grew to many times its initial worth. "Hindsight is always 20:20," he said.

Hindsight is always 20:20, but the Christian version of that saying is essentially, "Faith clarifies sovereignty." You see, faith requires both foresight and hindsight. Foresight is needed to propel us into the unknown, to see what others cannot, to hope where others have yet to dream. But hindsight is also needed to build a substantive case that moves us with conviction to act on the things not seen (Heb 11:1). When I look back over the course of my life, I see His hand intervening on so many levels, protecting, encouraging, convicting, promising, sustaining me.

What do you see when you look back? Virtually every person can see the trail of His hand throughout their life if they'll only look for them. If you don't see them, put on the lenses of faith, and those things that used to leave you scratching your head in wonder will become the foundational building blocks of who God has shaped you to be today.

I look back, and I see everything that happened in my life coalescing around God's call in my life to be a shepherd of His people. It is crystal clear to me. Not one major life experience has been wasted in His patient, progressive revelation to me as His child. He is 100% efficient. All the good, the bad and the ugly were used to get me where He needed me to be. The exciting thing is that He's not done, God willing.

So keep moving forward. The more you step out in faith, the more clear His sovereign hand becomes behind you. Your faith will clarify His sovereignty. As my friend Bill Smith has reminded me, God gives us the privilege to stand at the side of the tapestry and peek around to see the finished side. As a pastor, I get a sneak peek of the beautiful tapestry that He weaves in so many situations. If you look, you can see them too; just look through your faith colored glasses.