What we want, what God says

Today: Jeremiah 42-45

"Sometimes what we want isn't what we get.
Sometimes what we get ain't really what we want..."

A few months ago I was singing along with the lyrics to this song in my car (Dave Barnes' "What We Want, What We Get"). Little did I know that I was on the verge of getting some news...some really disappointing news...the same week. Something that I REALLY wanted, REALLY prayed for and REALLY thought was going to happen--didn't. To be honest, it made made me sad-mad-disappointed-scared all at once. I was back to square one.

I cried. My parents brought me dinner (LOVE them!). And I prayed again, "Why, God? Why? I'm one of your kids--and I really wanted XYZ to happen. Did I do something wrong?"

And God was silent.

Honestly, I felt hurt--like the God I trusted let me down.

In those moments, well-intentioned people say things like, "Things happen for a reason" or "God must have something else that's just right for you." I believe those sentiments, but I don't exactly want to hear them in the middle of my sad-mad-disappointed-scared stage.

God was telling me to be patient and to trust Him--to keep aiming for what I want, but to not bulldoze through on my own and make a quick decision without His blessing. I'm still trying to work on that lesson. :)

In today's passage, I thought it was interesting that God's people faced a similar challenge. God gave them some instruction via the prophet Jeremiah. But it wasn't the message they wanted to hear. Instead of listening, they did the exact opposite--and God wasn't happy.

It's important for us to remember that what we want and what God wants aren't always the same things--and what God says and what we want to hear aren't always identical, either. Does God love us still? Absolutely. But here's one thing that makes me feel better in my sad-mad-disappointed-scared stage: God knows and sees a lot more than I do. Perhaps things don't always work out the way I want them to because 1) I'm not God and 2) God has extra information and wisdom--His delay or denial of my requests could be for my protection or growth. And perhaps the idea that "there's something else that's just right" will actually become reality at some point. In the meantime, I'm trying to trust what God already said.

Tomorrow: Jeremiah 46-48