When all you can say is Why Why Why??

Why?

Sometimes when bad things happen, it does not make sense. Seems like the news is chock full of stories of bad things happening to good people: Shootings, abductions, diseases, sickness, the list can go on and on. Sometimes the list is very real and personal: inability to qualify for the desired job  position, not being able to drive (due to special circumstances) to go wherever you want to go, not knowing where the next meal is going to come from when the bank account is low and there are bills to pay. It seems devastating, hopeless, and dire. You may have the sensation that "your ears are burning" because you just know everyone is talking about your awful situation. Or maybe it is just the opposite, you have the sinking hopeless feeling in your stomach because you are keenly aware that no one really cares; you are experiencing private pain that is real and serious, but you know deep down that there is no shoulder to cry on and that no one that really understands you completely. 

Plan A

Question everything! Pull the covers over your head and have a good cry. Call up a friend and complain (if there are any available to talk to).  Go for a walk and contemplate all the evil in the world. Shake fists in the air and scream WHY, WHY, WHY?????!!!!!! 

Plan B

So now that you are through with Plan A, it seems pointless and futile. Maybe you feel a little better after the crying and the screaming, but still, you are left hopeless, with no real direction to take. So you try a new approach. This one is the most popular plan in the world. It is called:"Fake it". So you put on your smile; hold your head up high, and go about your daily life. If anyone asks how you are doing, you cheerfully reply, "GREAT"! Or maybe your reply is more subtle, "good". It is still the same approach. Ignoring the hopelessness in your heart is not going to make it go away. 

Plan C

Plan A and B did not really help you very  much; sure for a moment there were som moments of stress relief, but overall, no real help to change the way you are currently feeling. The reason for this is that the plan that we put as "C" should really be "Gird up your loins" Huh? My loins? What the heck are you talking about? In bible times, if a man was in battle, he had to gird up his loins, that means he had to tuck in his dress so that it became like pants so that he could run and fight. I am talking about the warrior inside of each of us. We cannot handle all the why's in the world on our own. We cannot handle them with friends, we cannot handle them by pretending they do not exist. "Cast your cares upon Him because he cares for you" That should be the first line of defense to the whys of the world. Here are the effective steps to "Plan C":

•  Step one: Tell God about the situation.
•  Step two: Intercede on behalf of the situation.(That means pray about it) 
• Step three: Let God have it, do not take it back. Lay it on the altar and leave it there. 
• Step 4: Trust Him with it. He has it all under control.
• Step 5 : Thank Him (in advance) for taking care of the situation, I mean, not after the situation has had a happy ending, I mean as soon as you tell Him about it.  

I have seen plan C in action so many times in my life, maybe you can reflect on times in your life that you effectively worked out plan C. I have also seen Plan A and Plan B take over quicker than you can say "Bob's your Uncle" (to quote Mary Poppins .. :-) )  I am not saying friends are a bad thing, they are not. "Two is better than one, a three- fold chord is not easily broken". " Bear one another's burdens". As a friend, encourage your friend to implement Plan C as their Plan A. Do not fall into the trap of merely being there, or just being compassionate. Take action! Faith without works is dead. By trusting God with our burdens, our questions, frustrations; our WHY'S.. we are taking action: a very important step in faith. The next step to take is to believe that God is in control.  God takes the suffering and uses it for his Glory. Look at the story of Joseph: Can't you just see him sitting there in jail asking God WHY, WHY, WHY?? !! I want to be like Paul and Silas when I am faced with hopeless situations. I want to praise him anyway! God said that he can move mountains. The question is, do we really truly believe that he can do it? 

Challenge for today: Be a real friend:  Help friends implement Plan C. help them make it their Plan A. If you are the one in the tough circumstance, just start with Plan C. God is in control. We can see Him at work when we take it to Hm. Keep a journal. This is an awesome thing to do because it can be a way to reflect and see how God  has been taking  care of us all along when we forget. The Old Testament is sort of like a Journal, each book will repeat the same stories, telling what God did from one generation to the next. That is what we need to do, remind ourselves of what God has done.

I have teens researching colleges, planning their futures, and a husband who is very careful to follow the ways of God and not the ways of the world. Can they have both? (I mean the ways of God and college?) Of course! Do I know how God is going to work it all out? NO. But I can start with Plan C! Or should I say, Plan A? Have I confused you yet? Hopefully not. Hopefully, you are inspired and challenged to face your circumstances with a brave heart full of faith! He is with us always, even until the end of the earth!

Ruth A. Hidalgo