Last night was one of those few nights that I got to bed early to catch up on some needed rest after battling a stomach virus for a few days.  But even though my body said I needed sleep, my mind would not cooperate.  So I got up and went to my study and surveyed the stacks of books I have yet to read.  On top of one stack was John Piper’s A Sweet and Bitter Providence:  Sex, Race, and the Sovereignty of God—a theological and homiletical exposition of the Book of Ruth.  Since the book was only 160 pages in length, I decided to take care of it as quickly as possible in the anticipation that sleep would come with the assistance of Piper’s theological ruminations.

Neither Piper nor my brain would cooperate with my intentions.  The book was stimulating and provocative.  The characters in the inspired story, Piper contends, were not in the hands of blind fate or sorry circumstances—they were in the hands of a sovereign God who works all things together for the good of those who love Him.  I was not surprised to find penetrating theology in a book by Piper.  After all, he is one of the premier pastor-theologians in America today.

Having finished Piper, the time was approaching 11:00 p.m.—and my brain was still not ready for sleep.    I looked over at the stacks of unread books and saw a book I had been given only one day earlier—Overcoming Evil by Cindy Shell, an Edmond resident whose mother was killed by an intruder in 2007.  I counted the pages—127—and calculated that I could polish it off in time to get to bed at a decent hour.

I already knew the story of course, and I was also aware of Cindy’s faith in Christ that so powerfully sustained her after her mother’s tragic death.  But the first few pages were hard reading for me.  I thought—“This is just going to be a sentimental sob story, a therapeutic exercise that will appeal to the emotions and help Cindy feel better after the story is told.”  I was in for a surprise.

It took nearly 60 pages; but then it happened.  Cindy expressed the kind of confidence in God’s providence and sovereignty that one seldom encounters in the shallow self-help books and sermons that the public seems so hungry for.  I had just read Piper’s book on God’s providence, and it was good.  In all due respect to the pastor-theologian, nothing in his book gripped me with the forcefulness that I experienced when I read Cindy’s confession of her confidence in the goodness, wisdom, and power of a God who had allowed her mother to be brutally and senselessly murdered.  She did not try to appear theologically sophisticated; not at all.  But she articulated as clear a presentation of God’s providence as I have ever read.

What Cindy has to teach us is that confidence in God’s providence is not an intellectual exercise; it is a matter of faith.  Here are several excerpts from the book:

• Through it all, I had an unwavering confidence in the providence of God.  I have no doubt it started the moment I unconsciously screamed out “Oh my God” upon seeing Mom.  I sincerely believe Jesus saw my breaking heart and immediately stepped in to start comforting me and carrying me.

• In the darkest moment of my life, I made the decision to run to God and trust in him and trust everything I was ever told about him.  (p. 58)

• The fact that I never doubted God or his love for me and instead was overwhelmed with the feeling of how he was still in complete control was a miracle to me even while it was happening.  God kept overwhelming me with his providence at every turn, and I grabbed on to it with complete faith and confidence.  If you honestly believe that God is in control and commit to that, does any “why” ever really matter? (p. 62)

• The problem for those who do invest everything in the “why” when bad things happen is that no answer to “why” is really ever mentally or emotionally sufficient.
   
  Knowing why doesn’t bring peace, and it doesn’t take the loss away.  Is there any answer that we, in our limited understanding as human beings, would be satisfied with?  I am so thankful because early on, the need to know why was taken away and replaced with the only understanding that does lead to peace and healing, the understanding that God is in control no matter what happens.  This is the peace that passes all understanding.  (p. 63)

• It would have been easy to be angry with God for ruining all the plans I had and taking my mom and best friend away. . . .I never thought to be angry with God, and I can only attribute it to God himself sparing me from thinking that and showing himself to be so comforting and welcoming of my brokenness.  So instead of running from him in anger and doubt, I knew from the first moment that He was in control of this, so I ran to him. (p. 65)

Cindy tells how God’s grace allowed her and her family to forgive her mother’s murderer and pray for his salvation.  God honored her faith and she had the experience of hearing the slayer ask for her and God’s forgiveness.  She freely forgave him, and she experienced that freedom that only forgiven forgivers understand.

Near the end of the book Cindy repeats a phrase which summarizes the book:  “I know without a doubt that the only way I have overcome the evil in my life, both my own sin and the pain of losing my mother, is by running to Jesus, the author of mercy. . . .The freedom you receive from seeking Jesus far outweighs anything that this world could offer.  Your temporary selfish desires and understandings quickly fade, and you see the possibility of an eternity surrounded by love and joy and peace.”   (p. 125)

Well-done, Cindy.  I’m recommending the book, especially to those who are hurting and questioning God about their afflictions.  You found the answer.  The answer is Jesus.

Alan Day, Senior Pastor