God is In Control

A couple of weeks ago, I told a story about how as I was preparing a sermon on “Peace,” that I received an unsolicited mailing from the Billy Graham organization--a booklet entitled, “Steps to Peace with God.” I mentioned how it is always nice when Billy helps me out with my sermon preparation.

Almost as an aside, I wondered how anyone could NOT see the hand of God in their life. I see God working in amazing ways both in my own life and in the life of the church, and I always assume that other people see the same thing in their own lives. But it may not be so.

What I sometimes forget is that seeing God’s hand in my life is a discipline I have developed over time through practiced observance. I see God’s hand because I look for God’s hand. This may seem like circular logic, but I don’t think it is. Some people see amazing coincidences in their lives, but I don’t believe in coincidence. I am a person of faith, and that faith shapes and informs my worldview.

One of the reasons I expect to see God’s hand at work in my life is that the Bible says it is. I realize that some people want objective verification before they will accept a biblical truth, but I think that is getting the cart before the horse. If we know the Bible is true in much of what it says, then it makes sense to trust it in places where we don’t know the answers unless and until it is proved wrong.

Paul says in Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” God is working in our lives, working for our good. God would not be very successful in this unless he had control of all the variables. In fact, Paul says, God works for our good not occasionally, not here and there, but in all things.

There are lots of verses that assert God’s control over the events of our lives, like Isaiah 14:27, “For the Lord Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?” and Proverbs 19:21, “Many are the plans in a person's heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” But I think my personal favorite is Genesis 50:20, where Joseph says to his brothers, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” Given all that Joseph had been through, betrayed and sold into slavery by his brothers, thrown into prison when his only crime was trying to be a faithful servant, interpreting Pharaoh’s dreams, and finally put in charge of grain collection and storage for the whole country, he has an incredible faith and trust that even when things seemed darkest, God was in control, and orchestrating the details of his life.

That kind of faith can have a wonderful affect on our lives. When we are able to trust in God, that frees us from fear about the future. It frees us from worry. We don’t have to be anxious about the future because we know that God is in control. There are so many things in life over which we have no control—our health, our family, the guy coming the other way in traffic. Things can go wrong in an instant. But when we remember that God is in control of our lives, we can rest safe in that knowledge. I imagine Joseph was pretty upset when he was sold into slavery and thrown in prison. It probably didn’t seem like God cared, much less that God was in control. It is when we do not see God’s hand in our lives that we simply have to trust.

If Billy Graham could help me out one more time, I remember what he said one time: “I may not know what the future holds, but I know who holds the future.”

Away at Camp

Some of you may have noticed a distinct lack of my presence recently. Have we lost our new pastor already?!? Does he get vacation so soon? The answer to both questions is, “No.” In fact, as you read this, I will be facilitating (read: driving) our kids’ trip to MO-Ranch to attend the Junior High Jubilee. Driving for 12 hours with 6 Junior High girls in the van. I wonder why we had a hard time finding sponsors?

More to the point, some of you might be wondering why I would do it. Isn’t there something more important I could or should be doing with my time? Something more spiritual? I think the answer to these questions is also, “No,” and I’ll tell you why. I have been going to church summer camp for most of my life, and, like many pastors and church members, those have been formative years for my own journey of faith. 

Recently, I asked a friend of mine who has worked as a professional in Christian camping for 30 years if there were any statistics about how many of those in professional ministry had their first real encounter with God in a camping setting. He said, “Although no actual statistic exists (that I know of) those of us in camping all agree…take a poll of any group of Christian leaders, pastors, missionaries, teachers, writers, etc. and ask them where did they ask Jesus into their hearts or where did they make the decision for full-time ministry and the vast majority will raise their hands and say, “it happened at camp.” I’m convinced that there is nothing in the Christian experience more powerful, more moving, more life-impacting than a camp experience.”

He also said, “Camp has a way of impacting our lives like nothing else. I’ve seen people who have never had time for God crumble in a heap upon discovering His majesty through His creation at camp. Likewise, I’ve seen people who have attended church all their lives find God in a brand new and very real and tangible way during a week of camp; caught speechless because of a divine encounter on top of the mountain, on the beach, in the woods, in the canoe or around the camp fire.”

I am excited because when I get back, on July 7, we are planning a Youth Sunday service that will feature some of the kids telling us a little about their experiences of camp this summer. I hope you will be able to be there.

Here are a couple more thoughts from my friend, Mike, about camp experiences:

I’ve probably attended thousands of Friday night (typically the last night of camp) sessions at dozens of camps in my over 30 years of Christian camping ministry.

And as different and wonderfully unique as each camp is, the themes and the feelings and emotions are mostly the very same–and these times of sharing together never cease to amaze and inspire me.

It’s tradition at most camps to gather on the last night to share a meaningful experience from the week. “What happened to you this week?” is the set-up question. There are always the funny stories, the goof ups or mistakes, the silly things done in the cabins or in the dining room.

But there are always the other stories too. “I never really knew who Jesus was until this week” or “I’ve been searching a long time for the love and acceptance I’ve finally discovered this week at camp” or “My life has been a mess but I’ve made the decision to finally change.”

These are stories of redemption, stories of repentance, stories of change…real heart change. The kind of change that starts as the seed of an idea way down deep inside early in the week and grows through careful nurturing and prayer all week long until nights like last night when the seed bears it’s fruit and the feelings are finally put into words and spoken out loud, “I will change.”

Almost every Friday night camp meeting I’ve attended has at least one person who stands to speak only to find that they can’t find the words. The silence and anticipation is palpable. What happened to them is too big, too powerful, and too intimate to be able to capture in mere words. They’ll spend the rest of their lives trying to articulate the mystical experience of what a “God encounter” really is.

And that’s why camp is so special and so important. If you want to read more of Mike’s thoughts, you can find them here: http://www.mstaires.com/the-victory-circle/.