God’s Box!

"Many times I struck your gardens and vineyards,

I struck them with blight and mildew.

Locusts devoured your fig and olive trees,

yet you have not returned to me,"

declares the LORD.

"I sent plagues among you

as I did to Egypt.

I killed your young men with the sword,

along with your captured horses.

I filled your nostrils with the stench of your camps,

yet you have not returned to me,"

declares the LORD.

"I overthrew some of you

as I overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.

You were like a burning stick snatched from the fire,

yet you have not returned to me,"

declares the LORD.

"Therefore this is what I will do to you, Israel,

and because I will do this to you,

prepare to meet your God, O Israel."
He who forms the mountains,

creates the wind,

and reveals his thoughts to man,

he who turns dawn to darkness,

and treads the high places of the earth—

the LORD God Almighty is his name.

Amos 4:9-13

Most people have a rather well defined list of the things that God will do and the things that God won’t do. We even carefully add provisos to the list like “God will do miracles, but He won’t do them in this day and age.” We take the box that represents our world view and try to make God fit neatly inside that box. Frankly, there is no box big enough to contain the reality of God. And when we try to put Him in a box He comes spilling out on all sides in unpredictable ways. It is the ultimate foolishness to spend your time trying to make God Almighty fit in your box. The best advice I can give is simply STOP IT! You are wasting yourself in Satan’s pursuit.

The Good News is this: Even though I cannot put God in my box; God puts me in His box when I accept Jesus Christ. God’s box is big enough to hold every man who ever lived. God’s box has everything I need to prepare me to live eternally with Him.

Once I am in God’s box, if I turn away from Him the discipline of God is very harsh. Amos 4 says God will attack our food supply, send plagues and war, even burn down our cities in an attempt to call us back to Him. And at the end of the day we must prepare to meet God Himself!

When a nation chooses leaders who have no faith in God it is like the passengers of plane choosing a pilot who looks good, sounds impressive, promises many things, but is wearing dark glasses because he is blind. It may work for a while until the plane needs to maneuver around danger or it needs to land. Then the blind pilot becomes more than useless, he becomes a dangerous liability!

Today, it is considered admirable to be able to “think outside of the box.” That may be true until it comes to God. When you try to think outside of His box you always end up with nowhere to go. Stay inside of God’s box. Think inside of God’s box and make wise choices by first considering God’s box in every decision. If your choice takes you outside of God’s box then run away from that option without delay.