God in a Box - New Evangelizers

A few Sundays ago the gospel reading was about Jesus being questioned by the Pharisee and He in a brilliant manner put them in their place with His answer. A few days later I was thinking about this story and the thought occurred to me; these Pharisees were trying to put Jesus in a box, to react in a way they expected so they could use it against Him.

When reading the gospels, I find the Pharisees were not the only ones trying to box Jesus in. Most of the people He encountered, even His closest followers wanted Jesus to fit some grand vision of what they thought He should be and do. Fast forward 2000+ years; we are still trying to put Jesus in a box.

“God if you give me this, do this for me, heal me, change me, then I’ll believe.” Sound familiar?

If not and you say don’t don’t make bargains, here’s another scenario. I want something, I think I need something and I expect God to take care of it for me. I plead and beg for the resolution I want with little or no regard for His plans.

A couple of years ago my youngest daughter was on the verge of entering high school. She had been in Catholic schools for the duration of her educational experience so far and I feared putting her in public school, especially the one in the large district we lived in. I was afraid she would get lost and not be able to succeed. (Of course I could probably also be considered an overprotective mom, but that’s another post). Another thing that was causing more than a little consternation: the tuition for the new Catholic high school my daughter wanted to attend was more than our budget could handle. Ana really wanted to go there, I wanted her to go there; time to start praying. My first prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for this opportunity, now please show me the way to make it happen. Sounds okay, right.

I wasn’t hearing any answers. The tension in the house was thick and I started to think we had made the wrong choice in deciding on the Catholic high school. Then I read an article about praying and asking God for things. I placed God in the box of my expectations. I limited what I wanted from Him, I dictated the terms of fulfillment. My prayers weren’t being answered. Maybe it was time to shake up my prayers. A new prayer: Thank you for helping Ana get into the high school. Lord Jesus I look forward to seeing the ways you are going to ensure the completion of your plans.

I destroyed the box, released my expectations and gave God the room He needed to make things happen. And make things happen He did. Now two years later, with Ana attending the aforementioned high school, God led the way. My prayers were answered in ways I wouldn’t have expected. We didn’t get a financial windfall, no unknown benefactor stepped forward to pay the tuition. We aren’t riding on Easy Street these days. Some days I’m not even sure we’ll make it down the dirt road, but God is there listening to our prayers and guiding us through the potholes.

Compared to other people’s problems, mine may seem pretty tame and almost sound like privileged whining, but that’s not what this post is about. It’s about letting God out of the box, let Him do what only He can do; rain His grace and blessings on us and don’t tell Him how much or when to stop.

Maybe things won’t be the way I, a mere mortal, would have expected them to be. Maybe I still have to sacrifice and suffer, but that is God teaching me, loving me, testing me and preparing me for eternal life with Him.

Anyway the point of this long winded story: Don’t put God in your box of expectations. If we let Him, in His own time and His own way He will answer your prayers. It may not be the answer that you want, but it will be the answer that is best for you, the answer that brings you closer to Him. And when we have reached the end of our days on this earth isn’t that the place we want to be, in Heaven with God. So as we finish off this Advent season may our prayers let God out of the box and into our lives as we wait for Him.

May the peace and love that Jesus’s birth brought to this troubled Earth be with you during this Christmas season and throughout the upcoming year.

Christina Weigand

Christina Weigand’s a writer, wife, and mother of four. She is also Nana to three granddaughters. She lives with her husband and youngest daughter in Cranberry Twp. Pennsylvania, returning there after a short sabbatical in Washington. Currently, she’s working on fantasy novels and inspirational writing. Through her writing, she strives to share the Word of God and help people young and old to realize the love and mercy He has for everyone. When she’s not writing, she’s active in her local Church as a lector, Bible Study, volunteering at her daughter’s school helping the children develop a love for reading and writing. Jesus fills her home with love as she shares Him through her writing.