If, Why, and Where

 Nestled in the sixth chapter of Judges is a passage where an angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon. His words were, "The LORD is with you." That should have offered reassurance. It did not. Gideon rebutted the declaration from the angel with three questions. Judges 6:12-13 (NASB)

¹²  The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, "The LORD is with you, O valiant warrior."
¹³  Then Gideon said to him, "O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, 'Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?' But now the LORD has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian."

If the Lord is with us. How many have been tempted to believe the Lord's absence and abandonment in times of crisis? Just because you cannot see the evidence of God's work nor hear His voice does not mean that God is not there. It is not if the Lord is with us. It is since the Lord is with us. Sometimes we have to press in harder during the difficult times to hear His still small voice. He is with us. He promised to never leave us or forsake us. [Heb 13:5]

The second question Gideon asked is why the oppressive circumstances were happening. You can read the answer for yourself in [Judges 6:1-1-6] Israel did not obey God. God punished them as a result. Does that ever happen to us? We disobey and the consequences that follow make us question God. Why? I have my list of why questions. Why is a beautiful kind little girl getting bullied at school? Why hasn't God healed when prayers of faith have been offered numerous times? Why are children abused and trafficked? Why do some prodigals not return? Why do so many who started out strong in the faith fall away? Why doesn't the church grow? Why doesn't God send spiritual awakening to turn this nation back to Him? I am sure you have your why questions. 

The problem with why questions is twofold. First, God is not obligated to answer them. Secondly, we cannot always handle God's answers. His ways are higher, infinitely higher than our ways and his thoughts higher than our thoughts. 

The third question Gideon asked was where all the miracles were. We may be tempted to ask the same thing. Where is the power of God? Though the harvest is plentiful the laborers are few and souls saved do not happen as frequently as we might like. Healings seem rare. Prayers are not always answered as we hoped they would be.

There are various reasons for this. The church is no longer a house of prayer. Prayers are not always offered in faith. Sin clogs the channels of God's answers. Doubts choke faith making prayer ineffective. These are just a few reasons. 

Like Gideon, do we ask God if, why, and where? Be forewarned. You may not like His answers. They prove very convicting.