Reflections:

   John Roebling was an outstanding building engineer. He designed and oversaw the construction of impressive buildings and took such pride in his abilities that he believed he could accomplish anything.

In 1869 he conceived of building a massive bridge over the East River from Brooklyn to Manhattan. At the very beginning of the project he crushed his foot in serious accident. Being a determined and controlling individual, Roebling insisted he knew best how to cope with his medical situation and took charge of his own medical care. Pressured to keep the bridge project underway, he refused to listen to the doctors. In short order, he began to show indications of tetanus. Lockjaw set in, followed by seizures and dementia until his death a few weeks later. John had to be in control and it cost him his life.

   Most of us like to think that we are in control of our life circumstances. In pride, we like to think of ourselves as self-made men or women who pulled ourselves up by our own boot straps. We like to take credit for our accomplishments, and think if we were in charge then “things” would have turned out better. We like to receive accolades for our hard work and sacrifice.

   The truth is much of life is beyond our control. We could not choose our parents, our home situation in which we were raised, the country in which we were born, our skin color or the language we speak, yet these factors have a big impact on opportunities, or the lack thereof. We can set goals, plan, dream, and work hard, but some things in life are beyond our control. A baseball player playing on natural turf has a routine ball grounded his way. The college scouts are watching. The ball hits a small dirt clod and hops over the fielder’s glove. A runner scores, the game is lost, and worst of all, the ball player looses out on a college scholarship, all this beyond the control of the player. Then there is the lottery player who buys the one dollar ticket and hits the 200 million dollar jackpot.

   We human beings so want to control life that our efforts to control the uncontrollable are ridiculous. This is where superstition slips into our lives. Carrying a rabbit’s foot or four leaf clover and avoiding ladders seem innocent enough. Athletes are famous for their superstitions: Minnie Minoso took showers in his baseball uniform to wash away evil spirits. Golfer Gene Sarazen carried a lucky ring in his pocket. Many people cannot start their day with consulting their daily horoscopes. Superstition has also slipped into the Christian faith. Here is how it works, a person dealing with an issue seeking “divine guidance” picks up a Bible, closes his/her eyes, lands a pointed finger on a verse and takes the reading as God’s directive. This is not the way God intended the Bible to be used.

   We human beings are called to follow a radically different approach to the uncertainties of life. We are called to place our faith in a wise and loving Heavenly Father. God inspired the apostle Paul to write, “We know that all things work together for good for those who love Him, to those who are called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28). This truth is so hard for us to grasp because it does not fit in very well with our self-determanistic philosophy for our rationalistic view of the universe, or the way the universe operates. It make a mockery of our rationalistic thinking, our dependence upon our own initiative, our dependence upon lucky charms, crystals, and astrologers, but it is the word of God. We all may have deep concern that circumstance and human capriciousness have derailed some cherished plan we had for our lives, but we who believe in Jesus Christ, can rest assured that nothing can frustrate God’s loving intentions for our lives. The trials and heart-breaks of life may seem like reasons to run away from God, or respond in ways that are distressing or destructive, but such a decision will bring us as much death as did the decision of John Robeling. Bill Crowder wrote, “ Life’s challenges are not designed to break us, but to bend us toward God.” There is much in life beyond our control or understanding, but not beyond God.  Our Heavenly Father know what is best for each of his children. We can rest in his infinite wisdom and goodness.

Blessings, Pastor Jesse