by Del Bates

Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments and his paths beyond tracing out! Romans 11:33 NIV

Everybody loves to watch a great football game, especially when your team is winning.

Well, most everybody, right? But what if you were given access to the final score before the game ends and discover that your team is about to lose? Would you still watch it?

On New Year’s Day, 2024, my team, Michigan, was about to play in the Rose Bowl. “Hey,” I asked my husband, “Isn’t the Rose Bowl on?”

“Yep,” he said, “But I’m taping it.” You see, my husband, Jon, has this thing where he tapes some of his sports events, and then he’ll watch the rerun on days when there is nothing to watch.

So, when I learned he was taping it, my cynical side rose up in me, and I went online to see who was ahead. Instead I found that Michigan lost the game, so I got busy with other things rather than watch their defeat.

At about half-time, I decided to sit down and join my husband after all. “How far is this into the actual game?” I nonchalantly asked him.

“What?” he answered. “This is the actual time. I only taped it for a few minutes, so I don’t have to watch the commercials.”

Trying to keep my composure and not give away what I knew, I responded, “You mean the game is not over? Michigan is winning?” Oh, no! How foolish of me! I almost ruined the game for him.

Isn’t that how we are with God? With our lives? We want to know the end before the beginning. We want to try and figure everything out. The author of Hebrews tells us that without faith, it is impossible to please God.

Sometimes, we need to take today for today and trust God for our tomorrow. To trust Him for the outcomes we cannot see. We can only go one day at a time. We pray, seek Him, and then we must go forth and believe He has today and tomorrow in His hands.

He knows our needs, and He hears our prayers. When we try to figure everything out according to our plan, then assume things will go that way, we leave God out of the equation. It will help us to recall God’s words: “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9 NKJV).

We watched the end of the game, which was great, and a close game at that. And, to tell you how close, the game went into overtime, with Michigan miraculously scoring a touchdown in an unbelievable play to win.

I don’t know if my husband or I cheered louder, “Go, Michigan, Go! Go! Go!” Look at what I would have missed if I had believed my little sneak preview to find out who won before Michigan even played! I don’t know where I found that “final score,” but I’m so glad I got to see the real end of that remarkable game!

Next time I try to figure out the end of a situation in life before it happens, I will remember the possible thorn in that Rose Bowl game. I will look up and ask God to give me the faith to let go and just trust Him for what will happen. I’d so much rather leave it in His capable hands and stop clutching it in mine.

This article is brought to you by the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association (AWSA).

About the author: Del Bates is an author, speaker, and podcaster. She has been in leadership with Aglow International for numerous years. She is also an award-winning author of two books, including Walking In A Minefield, a nonfiction book on spiritual warfare.

Del and her husband are snowbirds between Florida and Michigan, where she spends quality time with her three grown children and five precious grandkids. Her heart’s desire is to further the Kingdom of God through her Pen for the Lord and her gift of prophecy, where she loves to equip others through words of wisdom from above.

You can reach her at Delbates.com and her podcast, Seeds of Hope with Del and Penny, on Facebook.

Join the conversation: Has God shown His wisdom in bringing you a different than you had hoped?