Let's See What Happens!

“Walk This Way” series reflection on Prayers and Peace

Readings: Philippians 4:1-9; Luke 6:12-16; Luke 5:16; 2 Corinthians 10:5; Deuteronomy 31:8; Isaiah 40:31; Psalm 46:10

I recently heard someone say that God speaks to us individually in words and ways we can understand. I would have to agree with that, as I often hear him speak to me through something I write, whether in my journaling and prayer time with him or later in the day as I work on more formal writings, such as this blog or my novel. I also know that God can speak to us through other people. This often happens when I’m studying a Bible passage with others and someone has an insight that really helps me, or maybe someone repeats and affirms something I’ve been thinking. Also, my reflection on this week’s message will be another of several I have mentioned where God has spoken to me through a child or other young person in my life.  This time, it’s another phrase from my 2 ½ year-old grandson. 

“Let’s see what happens.” That’s the phrase he said often on my last visit with him. I laughed almost every time because it was often said at a time when something slightly precarious was about to occur. Fortunately, the precarious situations were usually simple ones, such as whether stacking one more block on top of the already very high block tower or marble maze structure would work or cause the entire thing to fall. I have to admit, many times I thought for sure his idea might not work, but it actually succeeded. The lesson for me in this? Trust. Or as my grandson would say, “Let’s see what happens.”

This phrase has especially stood out to me this week as I reflect on prayer and peace. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” So, in the words of my grandson, I should pray my heart out, give all my worries to God, and then simply “See what happens.” 

I should add that on the times my grandson’s ideas failed, he often just laughed at the result (as long as he wasn’t overly tired!) The tall towers or carefully designed structures weren’t so important that he lost the joy of seeing them tumble down most of the time. The takeaway for me with this? The messy can be okay. In fact, it can even be joyful if you have your mind in the right place. In other words, I can think about the good and true when things aren’t going seemingly perfect or in the way I’d planned. Philippians 4:8-9 says, “And now, dear brother and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you."

This week’s message also included Luke 6:12-16, where we see Jesus get away to pray alone before deciding on who to choose as his twelve disciples. And this is one of many where we see Jesus get away to pray. Luke 5:16 says, “But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” The Bible also shows him praying after long days of healing people, before performing miracles like the feeding of the 5,000 and, similarly, the feeding of the 4,000, and one of the most incredible ones is when we see him praying in the Garden of Gethsemane before going to the cross (See Matthew 26:36-46; Mark 14:32; Luke 22:39-46). I’m always in awe of how he prayed for God’s will to be done even in his own anguish and distress. It reminds me to do the same, to be honest with my feelings, my fears, but then pray that I can trust God’s will and not my own in the situation. And the fact that Jesus is shown praying so often tells me that it wasn't an occasional occurrence. It was something he did all the time, every day, many times a day, and therefore, something I need to do too if I’m walking in his way. 

I think sometimes the hard part of praying isn’t necessarily the telling part, but the listening part and the trusting part. 

Psalm 46:10 reminds me, “Be still and know that I am God.” 

Proverbs 3:5 reminds me, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.”

Deuteronomy 31:8 reminds me, “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

Isaiah 40:31 reminds me, “But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

1 Peter 5:7 says, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

These verses are all ones that came to me this past week as I prayed and LISTENED. I can’t help but notice that they all remind me, like the verses from Philippians, to not be afraid, but to give my fears to God and trust him. 

In my reflection this week, I also read a commentary by David Guzik on Philippians 4:5, “Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.” This gentleness, he said, is from the Greek word epieikes, which means mildness, patience, yielding, gentleness, and moderation. It is the same gentleness Jesus shows to the woman caught in adultery and brought to Jesus. He showed a holy gentleness. Guzik said it’s a word that describes the heart of a person who will let the Lord fight his battles. It describes one who is really free to let go of anxieties and things that cause stress because he knows the Lord will take up his cause.

As I type this, I’m wearing a bracelet that says, “Love ＞ Fear.” (Love is greater than fear). When I’m not wearing it, I have it placed where I can see the reminder each day. It’s the perfect reminder that God’s love is stronger than my fears and insecurities, and that when I have those fears, I can pray to him to remind me of the truth of his power, love, and presence in my life and in the lives of all I care about.  I can have the heart of a person who lets God fight my battles, which likely means that, like Jesus, I'm praying all the time.

I pray that every reader of this reflection will remember this, too. I pray you will know that God invites you to come to him, to honestly pour your heart out to him, and then to listen and trust his plan, one that comes in his perfect timing and is far better than we can even imagine. 

Journal Prompts:

Write a prayer to God each day. Here’s one way to do this:

• Start with thanking God for who he is and all he does.

• Pour out your requests, release your anxieties to him. 

• Pause and ask him to speak truth to you about these things. 

• Confirm that what you hear is from God by looking in your Bible. You can easily search a word or thought by looking it up in a concordance (often at the back of your Bible), or by typing it into a Bible app (such as Biblegateway.com), or typing into an internet search “What God says about…”

• Write what God has said to you. This might include rewriting the verse or verses that you were led to and then praying more about these.

• Close again in thanks and praise.