When we cry: I JUST DON'T GET IT!

There were 2 sentences that were said repeatedly to me when I was a primary school teacher: 

• “Miss Tigell, what do I do now?”; and 
• “I don’t get it!” 

After a while those two statements would begin to grate on my nerves, until one day I realised these cries were two oft-repeated things I would call out to God.  

I used to react quite quickly to “I don’t get it”, telling my students to re-word it to: “I don’t understand” wanting them to be more precise in their language. I realised later that in essence what they were saying was quite true, because if we don’t understand something, it can be really hard to GET it - to get it into our thought pattern, our behaviour, or our spirit. Additionally, we can often be quick to put down, criticise or discard things we don’t get.

When we learn things by rote, we may know something, and yet not understand. When we understand something we’re learning, it is easier to put into practice and to apply in a wider range of situations.  

“We do what we know from our head; we do from the heart what we understand.”

There are many things I don’t know — a lot of things I don’t understand, especially about the Lord: about worshipping Him, serving, following and obeying Him. I know I bit; I’m growing in others; I’m gaining an understanding in some and pursuing understanding of others.

It is important to note that we are not always going to understand everything. We're certainly not going to understand everything about God. When it comes to obedience to the Lord, we may often find we don't understand the why, the what or the how of what He is telling us or commanding us to do. Understanding is not a pre-requisite to obey Him.
This is a matter of trust and submission to His sovereignty and lordship. In this instance, it is understanding that the Lord sees, knows and understands more than we do and is leading us a particular way because as a good Father He is protecting, preparing or pruning us.
 
However, there are also many instances in the Bible where God calls us to pursue and to gain wisdom and understanding. 

Colossians 1:9-15  “For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you, and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of His will, through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way; bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with power according to His glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

Here Paul is praying for the church in Colossae.  He prays that God would fill them with the knowledge of His will through spiritual wisdom and understanding.

Why?

• To live a life worthy of God
• To please Him in every way (worship)
• To bear fruit in their labours
• To grow in the Lord
• To be strengthened with His mighty power
• To have patience and endurance
• And to joyfully give thanks to the Father.

In order to live life, in order to operate in Christlikeness and to minister to others, we need to gain wisdom and understanding. 

I don’t know but I could certainly do with a tad more patience, power and endurance. I only want to please God and not get caught up trying to please others — or myself (albeit it a hard temptation to resist).  

I want to see Kingdom fruit in all I do, in all I am. 

I want to keep growing in my relationship with God. I want more of Him and for Him to have more of me.

How about you?

How do we gain spiritual wisdom and understanding? Remembering it is not gaining mere knowledge by force of will, but gaining spiritual wisdom, which by nature of the very word comes by and through the Spirit of God:

• We pray
• We meditate on His Word — constantly keeping His Word in mind
• We ask the Holy Spirit to be living, breathing, and illuminating Himself within us
• We abide in Christ.
  
  The more time we spend with Him, special time set aside as well as during daily routines, the more we will know Him, understand His character, understand His ways, fall more in love with Him and be devoted to Him — not just the things of Him, the things He provides, or the experiences we have because of Him etc — but Him alone.

In an article back in January 2000, songwriter and worship leader, Matt Redman wrote that in our relationship with Jesus, the more we revere Him, the more we realise the wonder of the closeness that He has invited us to.  He says:

 “I want to know this King and this friend as deeply as I can. And I find the more I know Him, the more I want to worship. The more he reveals Himself to me, the more my heart cannot help but respond. Sometimes when things grow a little cold, it’s simply because I haven’t been putting myself in a place where I can receive this kind of revelation from God.  I need to spend time reading His word afresh, and trying to listen to Him.“  

Redman concludes writing: 

“God is calling you to the place of friendship. It’s time to renew the intimate friendship. Do what you must, as soon as you can. Because, in the end, with worship leading, it’s not about what you know; it’s all about Who you know.”

We need to be true worshippers — worshipping Him in prayer, in meditation, and yes, through music.

What do you know about God and what do you understand? I’ve listed a few topics below for you to think about in your Quiet Time this week.  Spend time with the Saviour, in the Word, in prayer and write down what you and He share together.

Understanding that God’s ways and thoughts are beyond ours, how well do you know God and how much do you understand about Him, in order to proclaim His fame? (Isaiah 55:13b)

Personal Reflections:

Am I growing in spiritual wisdom and understanding?  In what areas?

In what areas do I desire to grow?

Other thoughts/comments.

Belinda Tigell is an Australian singer-songwriter, speaker, teacher, worship leader and author. 

For copies of her books visit: www.belindatigellministries.bigcartel.com 

For ebook versions visit: Amazon Kindle

Belinda is getting set to release her third book: More of His Word in My Life. To pre-order, sign up here: https://tinyurl.com/32y2exst

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