Being Content

Good Timing

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A friend and I were texting recently about some good news she received. As we were doing so, we were struck by the timing that God had orchestrated. It was one of those “I love it when a plan comes together” types of occurrences, where everything seemed to be falling into place and this last piece of the puzzle, which was long-awaited for, fit nicely in right where it should be.

In the midst of thanking God for His graciousness in coordinating details so that this good fortune would occur at just the right time, I was reminded  that God’s timing is good regardless of whether we recognize it or not. Sometimes, as in this case, we can see God’s hand at work and we joyfully celebrate that He has brought to completion the good work that we believe He had started. Other times, His plans are not so obvious. When we receive bad news, when the long-awaited opportunity doesn’t come, or when we patiently wait only to be disappointed at the outcome, we can be reticent to rejoice at God’s timing. We may wonder what He’s doing or question why He’s doing it, forgetting that both in the sunshine and in the rain, God is working out His good purposes.

However, despite what it may look like from our perspective God is not inconsistent with how He manages the details of our lives. His children can have confidence that He is always working for our good and for His glory (See Rom. 8:28). The good news we receive doesn’t increase His proclivity towards this aim, and the bad news we experience doesn’t prevent it. As is the case with any good father, he knows that our desires and plans may not be the best. He is willing to wait in order to give His children not merely acceptable gifts, but good ones, the best ones. He has promised not to withhold from us any good thing. If we truly believe that, than we can confidently trust God’s wisdom in choosing what He gives us and rely on His timing for when He does.

It’s easy to celebrate when the graciousness of God’s timing is made abundantly obvious to us. It’s more difficult to do so when this isn’t as readily apparent. However, whether we see it or not, we can trust that God’s timing is good. If we kept this perspective, perhaps we would be more inclined to find joy in Him, regardless of the type of news we receive.

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Purpose

The Master’s Hand

When I was younger, my dad loved a song recorded by Wayne Watson called “The Touch of the Master’s Hand” [affiliate link]. This song, based on a poem, tells the touching story of a violin that was scheduled to be auctioned for just a few dollars until, when it is played by a man who truly understands its value, the crowd realizes what a beautiful instrument it is. The song draws a parallel to how many people are regarded as worthless until their lives are touched by the restorative and revealing power of Christ.  As the song concludes:

You know there’s many a man with his life out of tune,
Battered and scared with sin and he’s auctioned cheap,
To a thankless world much like that old violin,
Oh, but then the Master comes,
And that old foolish crowd they never understand,
The worth of a soul and the change that is rought,
Just by one touch of the Masters hand.

It’s a compelling reminder of how Christ can transform a broken life into something that is beautiful. We may not see the worth of another person, but their Maker certainly does. Through His work in their life, the beauty that He has created can more fully be revealed.

However, many times we focus so much on the restorative power of Christ, that we neglect to realize that He doesn’t just want to restore us so that we are something beautiful to look at, but He desires that our lives would be used for His glory. To keep the parallel of the song, our lives are to be used by the Master to make beautiful music. How we act should sing of His greatness. How we respond should be with the melodies of His love.

In other words, our rescue isn’t just about being saved (although thankfully He does that through the redemptive power of His Son’s death and resurrection); our rescue is for the purpose of being used. Our goal should be to be instruments of His purpose – not for our own benefit, but for His Kingdom.

The Master doesn’t want to just save us from this “thankless” world; He wants to use us in the world to draw others to Him. 

And because He is the One who is at work within us (Phil 2:13), His sons and daughters can have confidence that however He chooses to use their lives, it will be worth far more than if we never placed ourselves in the Master’s Hands.

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