Sometimes you don’t understand why

I know a lot of our teachable moments are funny or sarcastic, but we thought we would do a serious teaching moment this time.

Now that we are in our thirties, it’s time to take stock of life a bit. No, we are not going through a midlife crisis, but every now and then, you need to step back and assess how things are going. Are the children doing well? How are the finances? How is the race going? Did you cross something off your wish list lately? There are probably more questions, but these were some that quickly came to mind. When we were in our twenties, it didn’t seem like we were really planning things, but rather reacting to them. Almost like lurching from one song to another.

However, in recent years, things seemed to calm down a bit. At least long enough for us to start planning things more. For me, part of the planning process involves looking back at our lives up to this point and trying to make sense of what has happened. One of my goals is to avoid learning painful lessons more than once. A period of pain is enough for me. I want to pass that test and get out!

God has certainly blessed us with grace throughout the years. He has always helped us get through, even when we feel like the blind leading the blind. We often look back and marvel at how he helped us through different struggles and trials. Most of the time, using 20/20 vision, we can figure out how. Although there is a time in our lives when I have no idea how we pay the bills, except for God, of course. Mathematics does not compute there.

Until recently, I used to think that eventually God would reveal why. If you are analytical like me, you like to find out everything so you can pack it neatly. However, I realized that sometimes you never learn why. There are just times when you will go through trials and never know why, no matter how hard you analyze it and how many counselors you talk to.

If you look in the Bible, in the life of Joseph, you will see that he experienced exactly this in his life. When he is young, he had two dreams that he correctly understood meant that his older brothers and father would bow down to him. He was excited and told his brothers, who in a fit of jealousy faked his death and sold him as a slave. He eventually found himself in Potiphar’s house as the main servant, where Potiphar’s wife constantly harassed him into sleeping with her. He always said no and one day, in his rush to get out, he dropped his coat. She used this to falsely accuse Joseph of trying to rape her. Potiphar quickly threw Joseph into Pharaoh’s prison.

To cut to the chase, later, when Pharaoh had his two dreams and no one could explain them, his steward recalled how Joseph had correctly interpreted his dream while in prison. Pharaoh was so desperate that he called Joseph, who explained the meaning of dreams. There would be seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine. Joseph suggested that someone take care of the food so that Egypt would not run out during the famine. Pharaoh liked this idea and decided who better than Joseph.

After the famine struck, Joseph’s brothers traveled to Egypt to buy food so they wouldn’t starve. When Joseph saw them, I’m sure he suddenly realized why he went through being sold as a slave. Of course, it was to place him in Egypt, where he could save his family. The dreams you had when you were young came true. He finally knew why.

Actually, he knew why. I’m not a Bible scholar, but I don’t see any reason why Potiphar’s wife falsely accused him of rape. Why did you have to go through this? Surely he must have wondered why too. He could have easily interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams while he was still working for Potiphar. All that extra suffering just doesn’t make sense.

Looking back, we have discovered the purpose of some of our tests, but there will always be some that we will not understand. The Bible says that the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, so we are sure that God knows why they are lacking. Unfortunately, you don’t always share it with us. Keep trusting Him and remember that sometimes you never find out why. Relax, because He knows what He is doing.