Getting Ahead of God

Tex

As a child, teenager, and even into my twenties, I did not particularly like dogs. I did not like to pet them, and I certainly did not like them to lick me. But when we got married, my wife convinced me that it would be okay for us to get a dog—and an inside dog at that! So we did.

In the spring of 2014 we got Tex, a Shih Tzu and Poodle mix that has extremely curly hair and weighs all of 5.5 pounds.

Though Tex is an inside dog, he loves going outside. Lately we have been taking him on a walk a few times a week, and we have to keep him on a leash or else he will run away. And even when he is on the leash, he still tries to get away. He will pull with all of his might, to the point of choking himself, because he wants to get ahead of us.

As I was observing his behavior and thinking about how silly it was, it occurred to me that as believers we do the same thing when it comes to God.

You see, God is omniscient, meaning He is all knowing. His knowledge is not restricted by the time-space continuum that ours is. He doesn’t have to react to what happens, for He already knew it was going to happen. He already knows what is coming your way next week, next month, and next year. We can’t see around the corner, but He can.

Based on His omniscience, God has a will or a plan for you and I. Romans 12:2 tells us that His will is “good, pleasing, and perfect.” In Matthew 6:10 Jesus taught His disciples to pray, “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Yet sometimes our wills, wishes, and desires do not match up with God’s. When this happens, we often times act like Tex. We feel like God has a leash on us and we put all our might into trying to get ahead of Him or away from Him.

But understand this: It’s not always the case that what we want is not God’s will, sometimes the timing just isn’t right. It’s not that I don’t want Tex to make it to the next street corner or that I’m trying to keep him from chasing that squirrel, I’m simply protecting him from carelessly running into the street and getting hit by the oncoming vehicle.

Likewise, it’s not always that God is trying to be a Debbie-downer and make life boring; no, He always has our best interest in mind. Remember, He knows what is around the corner and we have no idea.

So instead of trying to make God fit inside of our box and make His will conform to ours, we need to get inside of His box. We need to “be transformed” by the renewing of our minds so that we can discern His will (Romans 12:2). We need to learn how to live as the clay and allow the Lord to be our potter (Isaiah 64:8).

When we can see it this way, then living in accordance with God’s will won’t feel restraining at all, and we will be a lot less likely to run ahead of Him. His word promises us that He will give us the desires of our heart, but only when we take delight in Him (Psalm 37:4).