Confused.
I imagine Mary felt that way as she watched Jesus carry the crossbeam of his own torture through the streets of Jerusalem on a day that should have been preparation for celebrating the Passover. I wonder what kind of conversation she was having with God as she watched her angel-announced child bleeding from being beaten and scourged. How she must have cringed as insults were hurled at the child she had carried through promise and uncertainty and as she remembered the stable-turned-inn where she gave birth and received the visit of excited shepherds, or the small-home arrival of wise men with palace gifts. What were her questions? She must have felt so much confusion. “God, what are you doing? I don’t get it!”
Even for the woman who received a life-altering, history-making promise from a heavenly visitor, confusion was part of her experience. Modern culture tries to explain everything! You can find an article on the internet by “experts” in every field the mind can imagine. Every expert tries to explain anything that doesn’t make sense to humans. Sometimes those explanations are valid, and sometimes they are just weird!
The truth is that some things are inexplicable. Some things don’t make sense and won’t make sense this side of heaven. We hope that God will help us understand in hindsight, and sometimes He does. But just as often, maybe more often, that is not the case. You and I need to make friends with mystery. Yes, God is a God of miracles, but He is also a God of mystery. Saying YES to God means that we also say YES to confusion.
There will be circumstances along your YES adventure that you didn’t plan for, didn’t expect, and that don’t make sense. That loved one died after intense intercession for healing. The child you poured your life into for Christ walked away from the faith. The ministry you knew God called you to became a place of intense pain and disappointment. Some “whys” won’t be answered in your lifetime. So, what does it look like to say YES to confusion?
It looks like peace amid trauma and tragedy. I hope you never need to say YES to that, but there are no guarantees. “The rain falls on the just and the unjust” (Matthew 5:45). It looks like calm when you find yourself with an unexpected car repair and a larger-than-budgeted bill. It looks like grace and forgiveness toward the ministry co-worker who is down-talking you behind your back. It looks like accepting pain and disappointment as part of the journey and trusting that God is at work, even though it seems impossible that He could be.
Dear friend, confusion is part of the human experience. It is unavoidable. It is a challenge each one of us will face. Saying YES to confusion is part of saying YES to God and His future for you. Risk and uncertainty are part of the adventure. Are you ready to accept the God of mystery as well as miracles? It may not be easy, but it is worth it. Let’s take this part of the journey as well. Say YES to confusion. Say YES to the God of mystery. Then you will achieve all God has for you to achieve.
Excerpt from The YES Adventure: Transform Your Life with One Word by Cathleen Zahradnik. Check it out here. If you’ve read the book, please leave a review on Amazon to help other people find it!