The YES Adventure

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Why Not Say YES to Questions?

I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word, I put my hope. Psalm 130:5

 Saying YES to God doesn’t mean that you will never have a question. What do you do with your questions? Do you view your questions as a lack of faith? Maybe you stuff them down like that last sweater in a too-full suitcase and then hold them down while you zip them shut. Part of saying YES to God is saying yes to questions. So…what do you do with them?

 Why not ask God your questions?  If we believe that God is all-knowing and all-powerful, doesn’t it stand to reason that He already knows your questions? If God is all-knowing and all-powerful, doesn’t it mean that sometimes He will know things that you and I don’t? If God knows my questions and He knows things that I don’t then why don’t I ask Him? 

 Asking your questions takes faith.  Here’s the conclusion that I have come to: It takes more faith to ask God my questions than it does to stuff them down and pretend that I don’t have them. As a kid growing up it became my modus operandi to do what was expected of me so that I could stay out of trouble. Not because I loved what was right, but because I didn’t like getting yelled at or corrected. As I began to learn more about what following God looked like— what trust and faith looked like on the outside—I applied the same principle to faith. I would always give the “right” answer, but there was no depth, no real faith involved. I stuffed my questions and confusion and zipped them up with Bible quotes and positive words that weren’t the true confessions of my heart. 

 Trust in truth when the questions aren’t answered.  God’s continual work in me has been to take what I know to be true and plant it deep into my experience. That happens most effectively during a time full of questions. In times like that there is really only one thing to do: Ask God my questions and hold to what I know is true based on His unchanging Word. Sometimes, He answers my questions. Sometimes He doesn’t. But I’ve realized that asking my questions of God is often a greater expression of trust. Trust involves unknowing. It involves a hope and an expectation that my concerns, my fragile emotions, and my future, will be treated with love and respect. 

 When I give God my unknowing— my questions— I have realized that I am giving Him my YES.

“YES, Lord, I believe that You really do love me.

YES, Lord, I believe that You will do what is best.

YES, Lord, I believe that Your timing will be perfect.

YES, Lord, You are my God.”

 

Key Thought: When I give God my questions, I give Him my YES.

 A Scripture to Consider: I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. Psalm 130:5

 A YES Challenge: Have you been stuffing some questions? Take a step of faith and ask God about them.

 Prayer: Lord, sometimes life is so confusing and frustrating. There are so many things I can’t control and I don’t understand. Help me to bring my questions to You, knowing that You already have the answers and will reveal them to me at the right time and in the right way. I will choose to trust You to receive my questions with love. Amen.