God’s good and loving purposes for storms and chaos
This week, I have had the grand opportunity to share a devotion each morning on the Christian Business Men’s Connection (CBMC) PrayerNet call. I shared the following devotion on day two. Links to the others can be found in the opening article (posted on 2/16/2022).
And good morning, fellow prayer warriors.
As Paul Billheimer says in his book, Destined for the Throne, “Prayer is where the action is.”
I want to say this morning that I am blessed by, and grateful for, the prayers you have lifted up to God… for those prayers have made this meeting possible.
This week we are exploring five encouraging truths God has given us for navigating through the chaotic seasons of our lives, and the lives of those we love.
For the purpose of our study, it’s important to recognize that chaos invades our lives when God allows, or even creates, some type of storm. Pandemic and financial crisis come quickly to mind. Also, the loss of a loved one, a job, or a business.
When Beth and I lost our home, we had to find our way through the chaos of recovering what we could, finding a new place to live, and helping our children cope with their loss.
Needless to say, we had never made such a journey.
It would not have ended so well if God had not been there to show us the way.
Yesterday, we encouraged one another with the promise of Romans 8:28:
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
One way God worked through our storm and its ensuing chaos… for our good… was the lessons we learned.
We covered the first of those lessons yesterday: Ensuring God’s sovereign protection during the chaos.
We learned that whatever devastation and chaos our storm has created, God will work the loss to our good, if we accept His sovereignty and continue to love Him sacrificially.
Romans 8:28 also encourages us that God works all things together for good to those who are called according to His purpose.
It is important to understand: God has a purpose for every storm He creates, and He creates a purpose from every storm He allows.
Let me say that again: God has a purpose for every storm He creates, and He creates a purpose from every storm He allows.
Job got it right when he said, speaking to the LORD, “I know that You can do everything, and that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You (Job 42:2).”
No purpose of God will go unfinished, whether we like it or not… or whether or not we submit to His handiwork.
But wouldn’t it be better to walk with Him in the chaos and adventure – to answer His call and enjoy His promise for our good?
Discovering God’s purpose in the storms and seasons of chaos is of paramount importance. Aligning ourselves with His purpose enables us to walk in His favor, blessing, authority, and power. When we align ourselves with God, we gain access to His perspective, wisdom, and knowledge.
Now, just to be clear, what we are talking about here is a specific purpose God has for the person, family, or fellowship experiencing the chaos created by the storm.
In our house fire storm, God had a separate purpose for me, my wife, and each of our two children. Those are stories for another time. The encouragement we are offering this morning is for each one of us to seek God’s purpose for themselves.
Of course, the best way to know God’s purpose is to ask Him.
The Father loves talking to His children, and no question is too small or grand for God. He may not answer you directly, and He may not tell you all you want to hear, but He has promised to respond.
In addition to His specific purpose for our storm and chaos, God has a number of general purposes that will help in our navigation. Leaning into them leads us to the center of His will.
I am going to share the short list of God’s general purposes for storms and chaos, and then briefly touch on them as time allows:
- To get back what He – that is God – lost in our rebellion.
- To accomplish our transformation.
- To test our foundation.
- To prepare us to comfort, help, and disciple others.
Now, God lost at least four things in mankind’s rebellion:
- His reign over our hearts;
- His intimacy with us; and,
- The possibility of inhabiting His creation – actually living inside of us.
Without these, God also lost the ability to glorify Himself in and through His children.
As we know, everyone reborn of God has had the capacity for these things restored to them.
God uses the storms and chaos to encourage and guide our pursuit of these things to a deeper level.
The catalyst for God’s intimate, glorifying good work in our house fire adventure occurred in our hotel room the first night after the fire.
As we sat there, still a bit dazed and confused, Beth opened our prayer with these faithful words, “God, whatever you have for us in this, we accept it.”
Honestly, I had never heard Beth pray such a prayer. My heart leaped at her “whatever”. It was a surrender to God’s reign in our journey.
His reward to her for that “whatever” has been one of the greatest expressions of His love toward us in the entirely of our marriage.
God also uses the chaos to transform us, as followers of Jesus Christ.
2Corinthians 3:18 speaks of our transformation.
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
The Greek word for transformed is my favorite: metamorphoo.
You get the picture, right? Ugly caterpillar dying to become a beautiful butterfly.
Now, consider all that is going on in that cocoon. It is chaotic, but normal. So is the chaos in our lives.
The Holy Spirit metamorphoos us from one level of glory to another… in the chaos.
Hebrews 2:10 encourages us: God the Father is bringing many sons to glory.
He will use the storms and chaos of this decade to accomplish that endeavor.
God also uses storms to test our foundations. I am thinking of the end of the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus warned that some houses will stand and others will fall.
Some may disagree, but I believe it is a manifestation of God’s love and grace to send storms that expose poor foundations, for we may suffer a greater loss if we do not allow Him to inspect and restore now.
As they say, if it doesn’t kill you, it will make you stronger; and God is not in the killing business – not with His children. His desire is to transform us from glory to glory.
Lastly, God allows storms and chaos to prepare us.
He uses the storms and chaos to inspect, restore, and strengthen our spiritual houses, that we, our families, and our fellowships might become refuge, encouragement, and wisdom for those who lose theirs.
During this decade, there will be individuals, families, and fellowships who will desperately need a strong spiritual house nearby. Otherwise, they will turn to the world for help and fail the test of Romans 12:2.
Our hope must be for them to come knocking at our proverbial door (or our real one).
Being God’s instrument to them will require sacrificial love and great faith.
All things are possible with God.
Perhaps the greatest encouragement for us this morning is that God has purpose and purposes for the storms and chaos He creates or allows into our lives… and they are for our good.
God bless you with courage and grace for the God ordained opportunities and adventures that will come riding in on the continuing storms of this decade.
Humbly yours and forever His,
Rob
P.S. The men on the CBMC PrayerNet call recite an affirmation each morning. Here’s the one we used for this devotion (reckon it to be so in your life): God is working all things for our good. No storm is too big for our God. No purpose of His will be withheld from Him. All things are possible with God. He is bringing many sons to glory.