The Twistedness of Life

How is it that every time I want to use my earbuds, they are in a twisted mess? I did not put them away in that condition. That gold necklace you so carefully put in your jewelry box, why do you always seem to have to untangle it before wearing it? And those Christmas lights, they have all year to secretly tangle themselves up in the storage box in your attic.

Life is often that same way; a twisted bundle of copper wire that leaves you frustrated and exhausted as you try to unravel it. You have well laid out plans, budgets, contingency plans, safety nets, you have things all figured out, yet your life still seems to be complicated and all twisted up; you just cannot find any consistent rhythm. And you need not look to far to see that the world around you is also one twisted up mess. The apostle Paul writes in Philippians 2:15 that life (then and now) is lived in the midst of a “crooked and twisted generation.”    

Have you ever wondered where God is in those moments when your life seems all twisted up, more crooked than a finger that got bent out of shape and never properly realigned? My roommate in college dislocated his little finger a game of touch football, bent into an L-shape until we, his friends, graciously “relocated” it for him. I am sure today his finger isn’t as straight as it once was or could have been had it been properly realigned by a doctor. In Ecclesiastes, we read – “What is crooked cannot be straightened, what is lacking cannot be counted” (1:15).    

Later, still in Ecclesiastes, we find this – “Consider the work of God: who can make straight what God has made crooked? In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man may not find out anything that will come after him” (7:13-14).

In the passages above, the writer of Ecclesiastes is talking about life under God’s providence. His sovereign guidance and control. These passages are reminding us that we are not really in control. God is in control, and the “twistedness” of our experiences in life are not simply fate but rather they are God-ordained. This does not mean that every good thing or bad thing that happens is initiated by God, but it does mean that God can (and does) use both the good and the bad for His purposes. These never-ending fluctuating seasons in our life help keep us dependent upon God. These passages stress God’s sovereign control over His creation.

Part of our life of faith is accepting both the good times and bad times without being able to explain how everything will work out in the future. But you can trust that God does know the rest of the story. We are told so in Roman 8:28 – “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”   

And as hard as it is sometimes, especially when the weight of the world is really pressing in on you, here is your road map for finding peace – “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). 

So, today, amid the twistedness of life, no matter how hard it might be – take time to rejoice, pray, and give thanks, trusting that God knows what He is doing.  

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