What If God Had Not Intervened?

Despite the troubles in your life, have you ever asked “what if” God wasn’t intervening? Fiona explains.

“If the Lord had not been on our side–let Israel say–if the Lord had not been on our side when men attacked us, when their anger flared against us, they would have swallowed us alive; the flood would have engulfed us, the torrent would have swept over us, the raging waters would have swept us away. Praise be to the Lord, who has not let us be torn by their teeth. We have escaped like a bird out of the fowler’s snare; the snare has been broken, and we have escaped. Our help is in the name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth” (Psalm 124:1-8).

Recently I’ve heard a few stories about people I know (or know about) who have had fairly miraculous escapes from something that could have been so much worse. Comments have been made that God was watching out for them.

A guy I grew up with drowned, due to a heart attack. Lying face-down in the ocean, his sister noticed him and she and her husband rushed to pull him out. On that same beach were two ICU nurses who immediately set about reviving him and stayed with him till the ambulance arrived. He survived, because of that early intervention.

Psalm 124 begins with the phrase “If the Lord had not been on our side . . .”

It’s a short Psalm, but with such a powerful message and reminder–without God we are nothing. He is our help, our protection–our very life is in Him. The NLT version of V8 says, “our help is from the Lord who made Heaven and earth.”

Do you ever wonder how things might have panned out in your life if God had not been a part of it? What if God wasn’t in control? What difference would it make to whatever illness or injury you now face?

People often ask me how I manage living with chronic pain–and the thing that seems to get them the most is that I have been doing it for so many years.

Were it not for God and my faith in Him–I don’t know how I could. Knowing that God is still in control of my life, that He has a plan–that’s how I face the dailyness of chronic pain (some days better than others!). Believing that one day I’ll understand and know–or see as God sees–the purpose in the pain.

Prayer: Father God, I’m so glad I don’t have to know what life would be like without You. When we don’t always understand why things happen, help us to trust in the knowledge that You have a plan, a purpose, and You are always going to be on our side. Amen.

About the Author:
Fiona Burrows lives in Melbourne, Australia. She is thankful that God walks each step of her life with her, and that He continues to teach her new things as she learns to live with chronic back pain. She enjoys finding time for reading, writing, and photography, and to share those things with others. You can contact her in the Sunroom, or read more of her writing on her blog there.

Despite things seeming to go wrong, do you ever ask yourself “What if God hadn’t intervened?” How can this change your perspective on His faithfulness and how He watches over you?

This is Clay Crosse singing “It Must Have Been Your Hands.” So many times I believe we are hit hard with unexpected challenges, but later we discover, upon reflection, that God actually was rearranging our circumstances in order to protect us from something we had not yet even seen. When things don’t make sense I always cling to this fact. Hugs, Lisa