I understood immediately what she meant. The pain of waiting and wondering if the Lord would meet her heart’s desires had left her weary. “I feel like I’m on a long road that leads to a dead end,” she said in sorrow and frustration. She knows God’s Word, and trusts what it says about his character. She believes he is sovereign, but in so many contexts we’ve talked about, it’s hard to see that he is good. She’s stuck in the gap.
I often struggle in the same gap–the gap between my understanding of God's absolute sovereignty and the truth of his unmitigated goodness. God’s mystery sets him apart from humanity and is expressed in ways beyond us. God alludes to this struggle himself. In Isaiah 55:9-10, he sums up the issue:
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Clearly there’s a hitch in our comprehension. God's characteristics are not at odds; they fit together to work mighty wonders. Yet we struggle to make sense of them, and, again and again, we’re confronted by the gap. Several recent examples come to mind:
A young friend who, at 25 weeks pregnant, discovered her second daughter will have Down syndrome.
A wife and her four young children mourning the loss of their father, who was shot in a case of mistaken identity while celebrating his 40th birthday.
A young woman who was adopted, loved, and nurtured in a strong Christian home, who has disowned her parents because they do not share her racial background.
God is certainly sovereign. Chapter 3:1 of the Westminster Confession affirms that God does, “by the most wise and holy counsel of His own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass.” What should we do when we can’t square his goodness in light of his sovereignty? How can we mind that gap? There are practical habits that build faith in the gap.
Here are some to consider:
1. Stay away from small slice judgments of God’s ways. God paints on the vast canvas of eternity. We tend to take a small snapshot approach. If something does not seem right at present, we believe it’s completely wrong. This reflects a closed, faithless mindset. God works in ways we can’t identify in every snapshot. We might not see them until we get to heaven. Guarding our hearts often means acknowledging our misperceptions.
2. Surrender the why question and seek God’s counsel. Asking why doesn’t help (think Job), but asking God for a deeper understanding of his goodness, even in circumstances of severe sovereignty, does. Ask God to exchange the pain you feel for peace and supernatural understanding.
3. Savor examples of God’s mysterious work and faithfulness in your past. List out and make much of the times when you could not fathom what God was doing in the moment, and only later saw his incredible goodness through the situation. Gather your altar stones, as God tells Joshua to do in Joshua 4:1, and make a point of thinking on them.
4. Set up a plan for what you can do today and do that. It’s easy to get stuck when we’re in the gap. We cannot change everything, but we can do something. Often meeting a small goal can help us grow as we trust God. Asking him some simple questions helps. How can I love and build with others today? What can I do today that will give you glory, Lord? How can I meditate on your power and presence here in the gap? Seeking him helps us move forward.
5. Settle down and determine to follow your Good Shepherd. We’re referred to as sheep so often in Scripture, and there are many dimensions to that metaphor. We’re not called to see the entire path ahead. We’re called to see the back of our Shepherd's robe. Refining our focus helps us move through the gap in faith.
Minding our gaps of understanding builds faith. As a child, I often prayed, “God is great, God is good.” That truth carries new weight as my life goes on. God is great, almighty, and sovereign. God is good, kind, and loving. Both are true. We learn more about his incredible holiness as we trust him with the tension that we feel between the two.
Crystal is a Christ-follower, wife, mother, counselor, and friend. She is passionate about connecting others with the truth of God's miraculous power and sustaining presence.
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