When God Does His Greatest Work

Joshua 4:18

And it came to pass, when the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD were come up out of the midst of Jordan, and the soles of the priests' feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before.

Why would God choose to have Israel cross the Jordan when the waters of the Jordan overflowed its banks? You would think God would have chosen another time of the year for Israel to cross, but He did not. Why would God choose to lead Israel through the Red Sea instead of around it? God could have easily led Israel a different way so that Pharaoh would've had a harder time catching up to them, but God led them directly to the Red Sea. In both cases, God did His greatest works in the most difficult of circumstances.

What is even more interesting is that God led them to these difficult situations. One would have thought that God was making a mistake, but God knew what He was about to do, and He just needed to know that they trusted Him enough to lead them to where He said He would lead them.

We often wonder why God leads us into the most difficult times in our lives, when we don't understand that God is preparing to work a miracle. God doesn’t need better planning; we need greater trusting. God knows exactly what He is doing when He leads us into the most difficult times, and He needs our trust that His providential hand is guiding us even when it seems that He is making a great mistake.

Let me illustrate this truth with some of the big days we have had here at Maranatha Baptist Church. As every pastor understands, we hate it when it rains on a big day. Every pastor understands that rain keeps many people away. I've had to come to the point in my ministry that I stopped getting frustrated with God over the rain, and trust Him that He is about to show His power in a greater way on that day. I've had two big days when it was raining, and one of our highest attendances ever at our church came on a rainy day. Likewise, one of the greatest days of souls being saved in the church services came on a rainy day. God knew what He was doing on those rainy days; I just had to trust Him to show His power even in the most challenging circumstances.

My friend, we must stop complaining about God not doing what we think needs to be done for Him to do the miraculous in our lives and ministries. God often does not follow our plans because our plans do not show His hand strong enough to work in the most difficult of circumstances. God often throws our plan aside and goes completely against what our plan is just to show us that He is God and that He can do the miraculous despite any obstacle that we face.

Do you find yourself complaining about the obstacles that are supposedly keeping God from doing miracles in your life and ministry? Instead of complaining about the obstacles that are supposedly keeping God from doing the miraculous, what you ought to do is trust that He will show His power in a different way. I believe that when you accept God's planning and understand that He wants to show His power in a greater way, it is then that you will see God perform the most incredible miracles despite the difficult circumstances that you face. If you will stop complaining about God not doing the miraculous with your planning and start trusting His planning, you will see God do His greatest works in the most difficult times.