A Post by Special Guest Jim Minton

“If I were God, I would do it differently.”

Most of us have times when we question God. Many people don’t believe in God, because they don’t like how He is handling things. Why do bad things happen to good people? Why do good things happen to bad people? Political comedian and atheist Bill Maher has said, “If we were a dog and God was our owner, the police would lock Him up.”

I can’t imagine the pain of having to bury one of your kids. A few years ago, I had to comment on a friend’s Facebook page after her son was murdered. The message that popped into my head was, “There is Heaven. There is hell. There is earth, with a little bit of both.”

Matt Holliday has been a big, tough-looking outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals. On his arm, he has a tattoo of Job 38:4: “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell Me, if you understand.” In an article for the website beyondtheultimate.org, Holliday said, “I like the book of Job. Much of Job is about trials and struggles, but also [about] understanding that God is God and we are not.” We are not going to understand His ways sometimes, but we must remain faithful as Job. Job 36:26 says, “How great is God – beyond our understanding!”

At times, being a professional baseball player can be a very humbling experience. It is not uncommon to go 20 or 30 at bats without a hit. At other times, you are on top of the world. You can feel like a god when 45,000 people show up to watch you play, many of them with your name on the back of a jersey they are wearing. Holliday continues in the article, “Players [like everyone else] often feel the need for approval from other people besides Jesus. For me [now], the most important – and only – thing that really matters is Jesus accepts me.”

In the Bible book of Habakkuk, the prophet has a conversation where he complains to God about how bad his country has become. “How can you let people act this way? How can you allow for this corrupt leadership?” God replies that He is going to send the Babylonians to devour Israel, because of all the injustice and evil. Habakkuk responds that having Babylon rule would be even worse! Have you ever been there, where the answer to your prayer seems to be worse than what you were praying for?

The book of Habakkuk finishes by saying that in His time, God will defeat evil, bring justice and rescue the oppressed. The summary of the book is righteous people need to live by faith that God has a plan, and it is better than ours.

When we say that we would do things differently, we are saying that we don’t trust God and His plan. Instead of trying to tell God what He has gotten wrong in our eyes, maybe we should spend our time figuring out how we can get in line with His plan and purpose for our lives. Remember Psalm 46:10 – “Be still, and know that I am God.”

In the Lord’s Prayer, we pray that God’s will be done on earth, as it is in Heaven. We often want Heaven here on earth. But Heaven is our reward for surviving the struggles of earth and not losing the faith.

It’s time to start up our Wednesday night F3: Family Faith Formation classes again at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church. There are a variety of topics on life transformation, including the class I lead, where we take a look at contemporary Christian issues and people. In week one, we will take a look at Derek Carr, who has led the Oakland Raiders to the playoffs, and how he is trying to live out God’s plan for his life. I will also introduce you to the Bible Project.

Barb Ninnemann attended Contemporary Christian Issues and People in the fall and said, “I loved it! The format was not a “traditional” one! Very informative, inspirational, educational and entertaining.”

I hope that you will choose an F3 class to attend and find the same inspiration, as you seek God’s plan for your life.

Jim Minton

To learn more about Jim’s class, Contemporary Christian Issues and People, or other F3 Life Transformation offerings, click HERE.