Are You Trying to Help God?

Sometimes God will wreck your plans, so that your plans, won't wreck you...

I’m curious as to how many of us try to “help” God?  You know what I mean, you are praying about something, waiting for an answer and in your impatience for an answer – you decide to “help” Him out. 

I could say my excuse is I’m a mother, I’m use to helping out – but that would sound ridiculous because He created ME…   In fact, the more I think about it, the more ridiculous it sounds, yet still I find myself trying to find solutions for things I’ve prayed for and supposedly “given over” to God only to take back.

There are several examples that should serve as lessons for us about this very topic in the Bible.  So many, many times when God in His generosity informed people of blessings coming their way without saying when – and in their impatience, they too decided to “help” God out with His plan.

Here is a newsflash for you (and for me!) – GOD DOES NOT NEED OUR HELP.

The Creator of the WHOLE universe (and let me remind you He did it in 7 days…) is able to handle our tiny, little measly prayer requests, more than likely with His eyes closed and His hands behind His back… As I write this I’m embarrassed for myself because how insulting is it to think that God is *not* able to do whatever it is I’m praying He’ll do.  What we often forget are the following things:

1) God’s thoughts are not our thoughts - "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.” (Isaiah 55:8-9)

2) We only see in part – God see’s in full. – “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” (1 Corinthians 13:12)

3) Our time frame is not God’s time frame – “But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.  The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:8-9)

Most of our trying to “help” God comes from our impatience and the fact that we are used to living in a microwave society.  Everyone wants what they want N-O-W!  No one wants to wait. When we think we’ve waited “long enough” we try to “help” God.  Sometimes that throws a wrench in the whole plan. One that God is still able to be glorified through, but one that if we didn’t try to get into the mix, would have caused a lot of headache and heartache if we had only been patient and waited… If we took a look at previous situations that occurred in our lives, we can probably see personal examples (I know I can…) where this has been the case.  We’ve also been given examples of that throughout the Bible, through Biblical stories that were to be our guidelines and examples, God sometimes (in His grace and mercy through those examples) allows us to see why He wanted us to wait in the first place.  Yes “Virginia” those were REAL, GENUINE people in the Bible.  Not made up characters.  Real people with insecurities, faults and problems.  Real people like YOU and ME.

Abraham & Sarah – I’ve blogged about them before.  God promised them a child.  God’s time is not “our” time – and Sarah decided to take matters in her own hands and give her maidservant, Hagar to Abraham to conceive a child with… That was not God’s.  You can read about this in Genesis 16:1 or in my blog (look on the right side of my blog, under my Blog Archives - 2014, December, entitled: “There is Nothing New Under The Sun.”)

God’s delay in answering prayer for us can be for many reasons.  One could be that He simply just wants us to trust Him.

Another could be that it is because what we are praying for could detrimental to us – and God (who sees the whole picture, while we only see in part) knows what that exact thing would do, beyond what we can see…

Or, that what we are asking for, doesn’t line up with God’s Word… (Ouch)…  There is a reason God says what He says. We may not like the rules He has set for us at times, but there are reasons that He has those rules.  Much like the rules we place for our own children.  They may not understand why they are in place but usually those rules are there for a very good reason and for their benefit.  Why would your Heavenly Father be any different?  Although it may not seem like it at the time, most of those rules are written because He knows, because He sees and because He loves us.

It really comes down to a matter of obedience and trust.  Do you trust that God loves you enough to know that He knows what is best for you? Or do you trust yourself and your own plans more?  Like Sarah, I can look back at my past and see when I took matters into my own hands, tried to “help” God out and made a colossal mess, which would have been avoided if I just listened to what it was my Heavenly Father was saying to me.  It is a matter of trust.  It is a matter of impatience.  But the good thing is, in looking at the times I’ve put my hand in the mix and screwed up “the recipe” He has actually taken my mess and made a “message” out of it.  Good can still come out of our messes.  The hard part is not going back later on down the line and screwing up the recipe again, but catching ourselves and pausing to think if we are going to take matters again into our own hands, or trust the One who holds our future.  You know, the One Who is the Beginning and the End?  The One who sees ALL things?  I don’t know about you, but I have peripheral vision and am truly hard-headed! After being disobedient and touching that proverbial “hot stove” over and over and over again – I finally get it – “Ouch! It’s hot!” And no matter how many times I stupidly touch it, I get burned!  So maybe, just maybe this time – I won’t touch it!

God doesn’t need our help.  The truth is – we need His.