No Matter What

NOT EVERY SAUL IS MADE INTO PAUL

This realization brought me closer to Christ than I ever expected.

I used to believe that if I gave a level 10 effort, I would get a level 10 outcome.

That's what the world teaches, isn't it?

Work harder. Get more.

Do everything right. Be rewarded.

I think part of my confusion came from the scriptures. They often teach that righteousness brings blessings, and somewhere along the way I started treating those blessings as guarantees.

Then I started paying closer attention.

Why was Saul enabled to become Paul?

Why was Jonah, a reluctant prophet, used to help save an entire nation?

And why was Abinadi allowed to be burned at the stake?

The more I studied, the more I realized something:

Outcomes have always belonged to God.

Sometimes He turns a level 2 effort into a level 10 outcome.

Sometimes He allows a level 10 effort to produce an outcome we don't understand.

That realization can feel unsettling because we want to be in charge of our lives.

At some point, faith stops being:

"If I have enough faith, God will give me the outcome I want."

And becomes:

"I will trust God no matter what outcome He gives."

That is where I have found Christ.

He loves the widow who offers her mite.

He loves those who pray, "Help thou mine unbelief."

He knows that in many Sauls there is a Paul.

He sees every imperfect effort and every sincere desire.

God isn't asking us to control the outcome.

He's asking us to keep trying and let Him decide what comes next.

Painting: "No Matter What"

This painting depicts Christ sitting with a  struggling soul with compassion and encouragement. Heaven sees more than results. Heaven sees effort, faith, and the courage to keep moving forward.