Foolishness.

Do you ever feel like you have been the fool? About whatever kind of situation or circumstance?

 I was praying about something yesterday and said, “Lord, I just don’t want to be foolish.”

That verse from Psalm 14 came to my mind, “A fool says in his heart there is no God.”

In the past I would have written off that verse, thinking that it is only for those who don’t believe in God. And I believe in God. Boy, do I ever. So clearly I can skip over it and apply it to somebody else’s life. Right? Call THEM foolish since it doesn’t apply to me?

I was rolling it around in my head as I was driving back from yet again another weekend away.  What does life look like for those who don’t believe in God? What do I do differently than them? Sometimes I fear that I have been a Christian for so long that I can’t understand anymore what it is like to think outside the bounds of God. Does that make sense? Like I don’t know how to operate without him anymore. Therefore, I spent the better part of my drive pondering this. “How does someone who says ‘There is no God’ operate?”

The first thing I thought is that they probably try to take life into their own hands. They try to create their destinies. They also probably try to earn people’s love and attention, not knowing that there is Love out there that they don’t have to merit, that they don’t have to work for. I can imagine there would be striving for those who have goals. There is also fear and anxiety mixed in for those who don’t ever think those said goals will be reached; or they fear the roadblocks in their way.

I suppose I could go on and on about the differences, but I do think these are pretty major.

Could it then be liberally said the fool (the one who says in his heart there is no God) “takes their life into their own hands,” or “The fool creates his own destiny.” “The fool tries to earn love.” “The fool is full of striving; and full of fear.”

When I put it in those terms, I don’t like that verse so much. It becomes a little more applicable. A little too much about me, for, if I am being honest, I can put my name from time to time right where “fool” is. “Bethany tries to take her life into her own hands.” “Bethany tries to create her own destiny.” “Bethany tries to earn love.” “Bethany is full of striving; and full of fear.”

Can any of you relate?

Some of you might look at that list and say, “Well Bethany, you are not saying that there is no God by doing those things! You just have some insecurities, just like everyone.” But isn’t that a false reassurance? If the person who says there is no God does those things, then isn’t that what I am saying by doing those things, too? For isn’t doing those things really a show that I am not trusting God in that situation?

I’m not trusting God, therefore I take my life into my own hands.
I’m not trusting God, therefore I fear.
Or what if I am simply not happy with life’s current circumstances? Overall, I really do believe God to be sovereign and good, but right now…well…I would just like to think this is an accident. What if my attitude is that? Am I really trusting that God, in his GOD-ness, has me where he has me right now? In the situations and places and times?

How many situations do I look at and, even if I don’t admit it, I really do believe THERE IS NO GOD THERE? “There is no God in that situation?”

So I take matters into my own hands. Or do nothing.

I have a lot of people in my life who I look at and feel very much like “There is no God there.” It’s a hopeless setting. They will never know Jesus, I fear.

Or what about those things you want to see brought to completion or resolution or released from bondage maybe, but you fear the odds of that happening are about as bad as trying to get a camel through the eye of a needle? Do we look at that and think He is not there? It has not crossed his desk? It will never happen?

How often do we truly believe that about relationships, jobs, futures, circumstances, business dealings, bondages, etc. that there is no God there? He is not in it. He is not moving there; he has either left it or was never present.
Does anybody else ever feel like that or am I totally alone in this?

It’s foolishness. My foolishness. Our foolishness. To claim that God is not in something or he is not involved in something, that he doesn’t see something, is to deny the essence of his character.

Because he is Omnipresent; in all places.
Omnipotent; all powerful.
Omniscient; all knowing.

The fool says in his heart there is no God. They say there is no God in life. In situations. In circumstances.

The fool is one who denies God’s character in one aspect or many.
Do I trust enough to say that God, in his GOD-ness, has me where he has me right now?
We are never more foolish than when we stop trusting God and take matters into our own hands; when our life shows that we believe there is no God there.