We Are in Good Hands
The insurance company Allstate markets itself as “The Good Hands People.” They say “You’re in good hands” if you allow them to provide for your insurance needs. According to the company’s website, this well-known advertising slogan was born out of the reassurance one of the company’s executives received years earlier from his wife: that their sick daughter was in good hands with her doctor.
We have confidence and comfort when we feel as if we are safe and secure. Think of a child who finds themselves scared in the night and immediately runs into the arms of one of their parents. All of a sudden that monster doesn’t seem so scary any more. Or spouses who hold hands, finding comfort in each other, as they sit in the doctor’s office after hearing those dreaded words, “You have cancer.” We all want to feel like we are in good hands, especially when we face things that are not fully in our control.
The world, both near and afar, is in ever-growing chaos right now. A dysfunctional Congress. Inflation. Crime and violence. Climate Change. Immigration. Racism. Rising cost of health care. Poverty. Turmoil in the Middle East. China. Ukraine. Need I list any more? If you are like me, the anxiety and strain to your mental health is like a leaky faucet, with each new drip, increasing uncertainty and uneasiness. Due to the cognitive and neurological challenges I experience, I find it extremely hard to process so much stuff coming at me (us) from every direction. Let alone understand it.
Despite all that “drips” around us, we have a God who remains in control. He knows the beginning from the end. Nothing that has occurred, is occurring today, or will occur, catches God off guard. God is faithful, He is good, and He is advancing His kingdom.
One of God’s attributes is that He is omniscient, which means all-knowing. We find these words in the Old Testament book Isaiah – “Remember what happened long ago, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and no one is like Me. I declare the end from the beginning, and from long ago what is not yet done, saying: My plan will take place, and I will do all My will” (46:9-10).
Because God remains completely in control, even in the midst of chaos, we can have peace. In this context, peace is not the absence of trouble or chaos. Instead, it is the presence of Jesus, our Prince of Peace, who in the midst of trouble and chaos, calms our hearts and minds. In Paul’s benediction in 2 Thessalonians we find this – “Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way. The Lord be with you all” (3:16).
The traditional African American spiritual made popular by Laurie London in 1957 has this as its title and main lyrics: “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands.” I remember as a child regularly singing this song in Sunday School. Maybe you need to sing it right now. Click here to watch Laurie performing on The Ed Sullivan Show.
So, today, in the midst of uncertainty and uneasiness caused by drip drip drip, we can have rock solid confidence that we are in good hands! Because God is in control of it all, we can have peace, a peace that passes all understanding, in His presence. Do you believe that today?
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