Title: The Unpredictable
unpredictable
Text: Psalm 95:6-7
"Come, let us bow down and worship, and let us kneel before the LORD our Maker, for this is our God, we are the people of his pasture, the sheep of his hand, and we want you to hear his voice today."
“There is a Korean proverb, ‘Do good, throw the bread on the water. Then one day you will surely be rewarded,' isn't there? I wanted to know if the proverb was true or not.”
He had done a good deed without foreseeing what the result would be of this piece of bread that he had floated on the water, but it had unexpected and surprising results.
I send out spiritual food (illustrations and sermons) to various blogs and cafes. Results are unpredictable, but hopefully someday good results will come.
“Throw your food upon the water, and after many days you will find it back” (Ecclesiastes 11:1).
In May 2002, eight months after the 9/11 attacks, Johnathan Sim, a Korean-American working for World Vision, an international aid and development organization, with the help of his wife, filmed a 10-minute video he would leave with his children at home in Seattle. He was about to visit Bangkok, Thailand for five days, and he remembered the 9/11 terrorist attacks and wanted to prepare for ‘what if’. At that time, the son was 7 months old, and the daughter was in her mother's womb. And Shim was healthy enough to play baseball and golf every week.
Then something really unexpected happened to Mr. Sim. On a peaceful morning in July 2005, when his two children were playing downstairs with his cousins, he suffered a severe seizure from a stroke and died two days later. The family remembered him by playing a video made by Sim at the funeral.
“Life is unpredictable. anything can happen So I wanted to leave a message for you guys.” These are the words Shim left to his two children. “I have many dreams for you. Study hard and be a leader, not a follower.”
The story of an airplane toy we just bought was also in that will. “It’s a toy that contains Dad’s hope that you will shoot it high into the sky.” Tears streamed down Shim's cheeks for a moment.
“Dream more than people dream. I believe that anything can be done. Take good care of your mother and listen to your grandfather and grandmother. You are a very precious gift to us. I really love you.”
Recently, the Seattle Times, an American daily, belatedly introduced this video titled 'Daddy's Letter'. This content spread rapidly across the United States through the Internet and others, and touched the hearts of Americans.
Sim's heart, kidneys and liver were donated to others. Sim played a decisive role in establishing an elementary school for 430 students in the isolated village of Dwachiyanda in Zambia. Many of the students at this school are orphans whose parents died of AIDS. The school, which will open in August, will be called “Johnathan Sim Legacy School”.
Shim is a very wise person. Because he is the one who prepares for the unexpected disaster to come. There is no business that can defeat death, and sudden disasters cannot be known in advance. If he doesn't prepare for the death that comes upon everyone, he would be a fool indeed.
“You do not know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a moment and then vanishes” (James 4:14).
A tsunami, measuring 6 meters high, 83 meters wide, and 43 kilometers long, suddenly rose from the calm sea and hit the coast.
It's Teitona Beach, and it's the first time this has happened in 30 years. These huge waves, caused by cracks in the ground beneath the sea, lifted sailboats moored off the shore and tossed cars on the roof of the road along the beach.
This incident, which happened in an instant in Taytona, is a cross section of our lives. There is no escape from the unexpected. There is no way to know what is unpredictable. No matter where you go, there is the possibility of disaster.
But even if we worry about these things, they won't make us any safer.
The psalmist found a way to live happily in this uncertain world. He found peace by remembering that God's people are sheep resting in God's pastures. God created all the mountains and valleys, the seas and the dry land. But it is unpredictable because it is unpredictable. Instead of worrying about what lies ahead, the psalmist chose to praise God the Creator, who never loses his mind. We can make the same choice.
“God made all things, beautify them in their seasons, and put a longing for eternity in man; yet he has made all the works of God unsearchable from beginning to end” (Ecclesiastes 3:11).
One of God's gifts to man is the ability to think. We have the ability to feel and will, but the ability to think is amazing. But just because the ability to think is great doesn't mean it's the best tool. There are limits to what you can think of. It refers to the limits of reason. You have the ability to think, develop science, develop technology, and do many things, but you also need to know its limits. It is difficult to predict what will happen, especially in the future.
'Unpredictable' is called 'unpredictable' in English. It means 'I can't tell you in advance'. We encounter accidents because we do not have the ability to see ahead, but we also encounter good things that we did not expect at all. God is the One who rules over the realms that humans cannot foresee. A blind person can go well if he opens his eyes and holds the seer's arm. Although a child has their eyes open, they cannot see like an adult, so they can safely navigate the road by listening to an adult. When we entrust everything that we cannot foresee to God, we feel at peace. God is good. So you don't want your children to go wrong. Even if we sometimes encounter things that are difficult for us to see, God can prepare an “unpredictable way” so that we can pass them well. So what may seem miraculous to us can become common sense to God. Because our thoughts and God's thoughts are different.
“The Lord of hosts, you shall call him holy, and make him your fear and surprise” (Isaiah 8:13).
“If it be said to you, “Ask the magicians and the sorcerers who chirp and whisper, will not the people seek their God, or the living, or the dead?” (Isaiah 8:19).
Therefore, we should come before God to solve the limitations of human reason, and not seek new people or magicians. I hope that you will experience and live many unpredictable and wonderful things and blessings and good things by relying on God. Give thanks and glory to God.
* Prayer: O Lord, our shepherd and light, we cannot predict what will happen tomorrow. I depend only on the Lord and entrust my path to the Lord. Even if you are suffering from unpredictable hardships and adversity while living on this earth, believe that this moment is a golden opportunity to be sure of God's love and grace, and keep your thanks and praise to God from fading away. We pray in the name of our Savior Jesus. Amen
* Meditation:
0 Have I ever felt anxious about something unpredictable?
0 Isn't toughness still ingrained in my heart?
0 Do I live a life that is guided by listening to God's voice?