God's Unsearchable Ways

An aspect of God I admire is His power over all things at the same time.  There is nothing that happens without His knowledge; no scheme of man or Satan is allowed to be enacted that skirts His redemptive plans and purposes.  Knowing we will see God's goodness in the land of the living turns our eyes towards Him in faith, to see what He will do.  As the scripture demonstrates countless times, His ways are higher than ours.  We could be likened to dogs sniffing the ground when God is over and above all with all wisdom, knowledge and power.  When we are on the trail of truth it is only because He first blazed it before us.

I love how God uses means we imagine are below Him.  He chooses to use human beings as His servants when He created angels for the purpose of being His ministers.  He can use the worst trials and tribulations to bring forth beauty, healing and comfort.  God even at times used enemies of His people to discipline His chosen people, like when He chose king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon to be His servant.  The children of Israel were incredulous the holy God could use such an unclean vessel.  I wonder how this verse struck them in Isaiah 19:14 if they took it to heart:  "The LORD has mingled a perverse spirit in her midst; and they have caused Egypt to err in all her work, as a drunken man staggers in his vomit."

God did not send a perverse spirit to Egypt to destroy them but as a means to redeem the nation to Himself.  Their efforts resembled a drunk man trying in vain to walk, slipping in a mess he was responsible for.  God did this knowing exactly what the end result will be Isaiah 19:22-25:  "And the LORD will strike Egypt, He will strike and heal it; they will return to the LORD, and He will be entreated by them and heal them. ²³ In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian will come into Egypt and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians will serve with the Assyrians. ²⁴ In that day Israel will be one of three with Egypt and Assyria--a blessing in the midst of the land, ²⁵ whom the LORD of hosts shall bless, saying, "Blessed is Egypt My people, and Assyria the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance."  Isn't God AWESOME?  God did not strike to destroy Egypt but to heal, that they would be a blessing in the midst of the land and blessed by God:  "Egypt My people."

Blessed is the one who trusts the LORD always, one who makes God his strong confidence.  In considering our ways let us behold the works of the LORD whose ways are past finding out.  Even so we can testify of His goodness and redemptive plans throughout the history of mankind, nations and even in our own lives:  God makes desolate to draw near.  Psalm 46:8-11 exhorts us:  "Come, behold the works of the LORD, Who has made desolations in the earth. ⁹ He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two; He burns the chariot in the fire. ¹⁰ Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! ¹¹ The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah"  I love how the voice of God breaks in to bolster our faith in waiting on Him, to be still and know He is God who will be exalted.  Knowing God is with us and is our refuge, let us exalt Him!