My sister Norma is sharing again with us today. I am so grateful for her life, she teaches me as she walks toward the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
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The doctrine of the Sovereignty of God is probably the doctrine that has impacted me the most. I learned it as an adult and it has transformed my way of seeing life, Christ, His work, my life, my trials. Every area of my life has been dramatically changed by this doctrine. And with it many other doctrines have become very precious to me.
There are many great books that explain this doctrine with such clarity and grace, that I feel very humbled to write about this, but in my attempt to write about it, I’ll try to explain just the areas where God has dealt and is dealing with me at the moment.
Understanding that God is sovereign, is a beautiful and powerful thing when all your life you thought you had some control over your decisions, future, and even your salvation. Resting on this doctrine, brings rest to my soul as I have learned to trust in God completely. Knowing His character and believing that His will is perfect and does not require me to decide, strips me naked of all pride and the feeling of “I know better” which used to dominate my life. I loved the “power” of having some say in my future and decide myself what was “best” for me in my own eyes. How little I thought of God and how high I thought of myself!
This old doctrine (new to me) came like a rock on my head. It hit me hard and it took me 2 years of tears and study of this doctrine to learn to trust in the Lord and that He is good. Even though I grew thinking that He was good, I still wanted to have my input in all things. Trusting my will better than my Lord’s was my way of living. Trusting in Him alone and resting in Him, was very hard indeed. But He came to my life and showed me my condition before Him. My view of Him changed from just a friend, to someone indescribable beautiful, bigger and more magnificent than I ever thought of Him, and yet at the same time, closer to me than ever, because I understood how this Incredible Omnipotent (in all the extent of the word) came down from heaven for a sinner like me, and extended mercy with such tenderness … and still is patient with me, every day.
What a rest to know now, that He is in control, over every aspect of my life. What a comfort to know that my life is in His hands and I need to worry about nothing. That if He wills something it will happen. That no one can resist His precious will. And me, a woman who can’t decide between 2 flavors of ice-cream, thought that I was capable of deciding on my salvation! When I change styles and tastes way too often, when my sins are not conquered and even though I want to do right, I sin. This woman thought to have a better plan than her Creator. But now, God has opened my eyes that I might see… I see clearly that His desires are better than mine. That He makes no mistakes and that I can trust Him. I am still learning to trust Him, I have a long way to go, but I have hope in His work in me. I have hope that He will finish the work and He will not get tired or give up.
My trials and temptations are seen different now. I sin against my Holy God and yet He is merciful to me. And with every trial and temptation, He teaches me more to be like Christ granting me repentance and pain in my heart when I offend Him. Problems, are not just trials, are blessings that my Sovereign Lord, has set before me to mold me and transform my character; to prepare me for Heaven so that I might enjoy Him and find it ALL in Him alone.
Raising my kids, my relationship with my husband, everything has a different perspective now. The Lord Almighty is in control, what should I be afraid? He does not just know what is going to happen, but has spoken what is to pass to do His will. My husband is a gift from God, given to me as he is and me to him as I am so that we may be changed to be like Christ; this means that complaining had to stop, because I understood by His grace, that I was complaining against God. And instead, my love for my husband has increased because I saw him, not as a rock on my way, but as a beautiful gift from God. My God has stripped me of things that I cling on to for the purpose of His glory. That I may die to myself and that He may increase in me. Some of those things He purged me of, I cherished more than my Lord without knowing it. But He did. And been a jealous God, He was not going to be shared with my vanities. So He purged me and purges me often of all the things I love, so I love Him alone.
I am 7 months pregnant now with a daughter after two godly boys (10 and 12 years old) and having her now in my womb has been a gracious gift from god to us. We, who had “control” over my womb, were stripped from it too. It was an act of trust in God to trust in Him in this. It was such a hard battle for many reasons. It had so many inconveniences and a terrifying fear that God would not save her. But even in that, the Lord has taught us in a loving manner, that HE IS GOOD! That I need to trust in Him even in this, that His will is perfect. And now, every time she moves inside of me, my eyes tear up with the joy of having a little daughter inside me, raising a young woman for Him, raising her to be a godly lady in an ungodly world. Knowing His Sovereignty, helps me rest assured that He is in control over her. And my only job is to obey, as a faithful servant obeys her master.
Oh, how precious doctrine this is! How precious and hard to receive by many. How difficult to die to self and see God as a Creator and owner of my soul. But once the Lord opens the eyes and all of a sudden you can see, it shames you to see how much pride there is in you. Maybe that is why is so hard to receive it. I have so much to learn and to die; to grow and understand; to trust and obey. But by His grace, I know, that He will guide my steps.
Norma.
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>Amen, Norma. Blessed assurance!! This doctrine has been the most stabilizing truth! God, He reigns! Thank you for your post! It was a blessing!
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>Amen to your post, Norma! The sovereignty of God is a wonderful anchor of truth. It keeps me tethered to the reality of His control over all things when I would drift or begin to fear.
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>The doctrine of the sovereignty of God took me years to grasp, after being influenced by the "make a decision to follow Christ" crowd. It is truly comforting to know that He chose me before the foundations of the world! Thank you for a beautiful meditation on this truth.
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>Normis: Our God is a Sovereign. Thanks by writing. Te quiero mil, Gaby Escudero
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>Norma, Thank you for sharing with us today the joy you have found in understanding God's Sovereignty.Congratulations on your preciousl little daughter and may He bless her with salvation at an early age.God bless you sister!
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>Jo, How blesses are you to learn it through your husband!.. and as an adult… it has a very strong humbling effect… blessings.Diana, thank you for your prayers they are well needed … our daugther will be named Faith :)… Also, I too hope that Becky has more ice-cream choices than that.. with this pregnancy,my choices are even wider!… blessings to you and your womb.Thank you for your comments.., it humbles me. Blessings to all of you, and may the Lord continue to teach us all to walk in His ways.Norma.
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>I'll never grow tired of hearing of the sovereignty of God in all of its beauty and majesty. Your words have been today's reminder and great comfort as some personal obstacles have reared their head in the last 24. However, even in God's sovereignty He displays an intimate knowledge of my needs by bringing me here for comfort and challenge and encouragement. It is the doctrine that has most changed my life as well, and I rejoice in the precious God-honoring way you have shared it with us.
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>What a beautiful article, Norma! This is such a precious doctrine, you've summed up exactly the impact it's had on me too.Love this: "And me, a woman who can’t decide between 2 flavors of ice-cream, thought that I was capable of deciding on my salvation!" Well, yes, me too! Hope Becky's got some ice-cream going in the kitchen today 🙂 Strawberry please…or vanilla…uh…And God is indeed sovereign over our wombs. God graciously granted us a boy after we waited 5 years or so, and we continue to wait on Him to see whether He grants us any more children. So pleased to hear of your pregnancy, I pray God's blessing on the remainder of your pregnancy.Bless you, Diana.
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>What comfort it is to know that God is indeed in control! Thank you for this edifying post, I mean delicious spread in the kitchen. Blessings!
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>Thank you Norma and Becky,I didn't hear much about sovereignty in the christian circles I grew up in. My husband has taught me as well as put us under great teaching and it has radically changed my self focus to God focus. I love that it is all about Him.He is surely trustworthy.Blessings on You Both today,Jo
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