Lies That Keep Me Off My Knees: God Is Sovereign
Now, that’s not a lie.
God is sovereign. He is the all-powerful, all-knowing, all-seeing, ever-present God. Psalm 115:3 says, “Our God is in the heavens, he does whatever he pleases.” God can do whatever he wants when he wants and how he wants.
Some people find comfort in God’s sovereignty. I historically have not.
What if what pleases God doesn’t please me? And, if gon’ do what He wants to do when He wants and how He wants, why should I tarry on my knees in prayer. I’m not out here trying to get my feelings hurt.
This is what old folks call “getting too big for your britches.” I can hear my grandmother now. “You don’ went to that seminary and learned you a little theology and overthinking stuff.”
Granny’s right.
My overthinking has caused me to distort the doctrine of God’s sovereignty and believe Him to be a God with little concern for me. However, God is not just sovereign. He is also holy, loving, generous, and wise.
When we hold God’s sovereignty together with his other characteristics, we have no reason to fear, and allow the following truths to lead us to pray:
God is Not Unbothered
When we hold God’s sovereignity in tandem with His love, we can trust He is not unbothered about the circumstances in our life. Remember, He is the God who sit high, but also looks low. His heart is tender towards His children. He has numbered all baby hairs on your head. And, He sent His Son to the cross to bring you into close relationship with you. If He didn’t even spare His own Son, how can we not trust that He will not also give us everything we need?
Have you heard of the story when Jesus feed the 4,000? Not the 5,000. The 4,000. It’s recorded in Matthew 15:32-39. Jesus is running a 3-day preaching and healing revival in a deserted place. People have come from all the neighboring cities to be healed and set free.
They are so eager to receive a blessing from Jesus that they don’t eat for three days. They don’t send someone home to pack some sandwiches and there is not one handing out fish plates. They’re hungry, but aren’t saying anything about it because being with Jesus is better. Food can wait.
Jesus, seeing that the crowd was fatigue, is moved with compassion for their growling stomachs.. He rounds up his disciples and says, “...they’ve already stayed with me three days and have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry, otherwise, they might collapse on the way” (Matthew 15:32). After looking at Jesus like, “What you want me to do?,” the disciples gather up seven loaves and a few small fish. Jesus does his thing and everyone was satisfied.
This story reveals to us that God is not unbothered by our physical needs. He doesn’t skip over our physical needs to just care for our spiritual ones. He’s not just willing and available to free you from sexual sin or empower you to share the gospel. He’s cares about your overall flourishing. If he cared about the crowd’s hunger, how much more do you think he cares about you being unemployed? How much more does He care about your health or your failing marriage? He’s not just moving forward in the direction of his new coming kingdom with little concern for you. His kingdom includes you. If you’re bothered, he’s bothered. He has compassion for you.
God Knows Best
When we hold God’s sovereignty together with His wisdom, we don’t need to fear the moments in life when our prayers will go unanswered or when what pleases God seemingly wouldn’t please us.
In his book, Knowing God, J.I. Packer writes, “Wisdom is the power to see and the inclination to choose, the best and highest goal, together with the surest means of attaining it.” In short, God, being full of wisdom, with the past, future, and present in his view, not only chooses the best goals, but he also chooses the best means to achieve them.
So if you asked for marriage, and God has given you more years of singleness, you can trust that in His sovereignty, His timing and the overall plan for your life is what’s best. If you’ve apply for your dream job and been rejected for the third time, you can walk away knowing God must’ve withheld it because it not a good fit and He has something better in mind. Whatever your request, you can get off your knees knowing that the all-wise, sovereign, and loving God is your shepherd, and because of this, you have everything you need (Psalm 23:1).
An unanswered prayer is an answered prayer that is informed by God’s wisdom and love.
There is so much more to say here, but I want to turn the “mic” over to you. Here are some questions for personal reflection:
Have you gotten to big for your britches, too? How has the truth of God's Sovereignty been distorted in your life?
How has that distortion impacted your prayer life and trust in Him?
How does holding God’s sovereignty together with his wisdom, compassion, and love strengthen your trust in Him? How does it impact your prayer life?
Discussion Questions for Friend Groups
Does the truth of God’s sovereignty give you comfort, anxiety, or something else? Why does it make you feel that way?
How does holding God’s sovereignty together with his wisdom, compassion, and love strengthen your trust in Him? How does it impact your prayer life?
What’s one thing you’ve be hesitant to take to God in prayer?
Pray for those things together as a group and commit to praying together about these things regularly (one a week, once a month, whatever works for you).
