Heidelberg Catechism Week 10

27. Q. What do you understand by the providence of God? A. Providence is the almighty and ever present power of God by which He upholds, as with His hand, heaven and earth and all creatures, and so rules them that leaf and blade, rain and drought, fruitful and lean years, food and drink, health and sickness, prosperity and poverty - all things, in fact, come to us not by chance but from His fatherly hand.

28. Q. How does the knowledge of God's creation and providence help us? A. We can be patient when things go against us, thankful when things go well, and for the future we can have good confidence in our faithful God and Father that nothing will separate us from His love. All creatures are so completely in His hand that without His will they can neither move nor be moved.

My reflections on the reading from the book...

This chapter is one I will definitely be marking to return to again and again.

"If God is the creator of all things and truly almighty, then He must continue to be almighty over all that He has created. And if God is a Father, then surely He exercises His authority over His creation and creatures for the good of His beloved children... There are no accidents in your life. Every economic downturn, every phone call in the middle of the night, every oncology report has been sent to us from the God who sees all things, plans all things, and loves us more than we know."

I cry over these words tonight, for I am struggling in a new yet familiar way. I pray to my Heavenly Father, pleading for wisdom and grace, longing to believe that His will for my life is indeed better than anything I could attempt to devise.