When God Keeps the Answer

“The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” — Deuteronomy 29:29

Did you ever have a day—or maybe an entire week—that just hit hard? Something happened unexpectedly that took your breath away or knocked you completely off your feet. In a moment, your world seemed to shift beneath you.

I think many of us can say we have experienced something like that. Those of us who were alive during the attacks of September 11, 2001, and old enough to understand what was happening, probably remember exactly where we were. It was one of those days when the world suddenly felt different.

What about calling a friend you've called many times before, only to find you can’t reach them? You feel uneasy, but you don’t know why. Then the message comes: they died unexpectedly. Suddenly, you realize the last time you talked to them was really the last time.

There are countless situations we could put here. Chances are, you already have one of your own.

Maybe you are sitting there asking why. Why did this happen? How could this have happened?

Why didn’t I see it coming? Why didn’t I make that phone call? Why didn’t I take that trip? Why didn’t I know? Maybe you are even blaming yourself for signs you think you should have seen. You know what? You’re not alone.

Some people may look at an Old Testament verse like Deuteronomy 29:29 and wonder what it says to us today. But reading these words this week, they seem to apply to the “why” of today:

“The secret things belong to the Lord our God…”

As human beings, we desperately want to understand the why. Why did this happen? Why didn’t I see it coming? Why didn’t I take that trip and visit my friend?

Why?  why?  WHY?

But there are some answers that simply do not belong to us.

That may sound harsh at first, but maybe there is comfort in it.

God does not tell us that we have to figure everything out. He does not tell us that every unanswered question is ours to solve. There are things only He knows. There are pieces of the story that only He can see. There are circumstances we may never understand on this side of heaven.

The secret things belong to God. Sometimes we have to place those questions into His hands instead of carrying them around ourselves.

Is that easy?   NO. Let me tell you—it is not easy. Ask anyone here at Boss!

If Boss the dog could talk, he would probably spend half his day demanding an explanation for why the squirrel he was chasing was suddenly allowed to escape.

Sometimes we want answers with about the same level of determination. But the verse doesn’t stop with the things we do not know.

It continues: “…but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever…”

That is where our focus can begin to change. Instead of becoming consumed by everything God has not revealed, we can hold tightly to what He has revealed.

He has revealed His character. He has revealed His love. He has revealed His mercy. He has revealed His Son. He has told us that salvation is found through Jesus Christ and that those who belong to Him have the promise of eternal life.

Jesus said: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.” — John 11:25

That is something we do know. We know that God hears His children. We know that He calls us to bring our burdens to Him. We know that we can pray in the name of Jesus—not as though His name were a magic phrase added to the end of a prayer, but by coming before God in faith, seeking His heart and His will.

We know that God has never promised us a life without grief, confusion, loss, or unanswered questions.

But He has promised something better: His presence in the middle of them.

There may be questions in your life right now that you desperately want answered. You may replay conversations in your mind. You may wonder whether you should have called sooner. Visited more often. Said something differently. Noticed something. Done something.

But there comes a point when the question changes from: “Why didn’t I know?”

to: “What do I know?”

I know God is faithful. I know God is sovereign. I know Jesus saves. I know this life is not the end. I know that grief does not mean God has disappeared. I know I can bring Him the questions too heavy for me to carry.

And maybe that is part of the wisdom tucked inside Deuteronomy 29:29. We were never meant to know everything. We were meant to trust the One who does.

So when the why begins circling through your mind again—and it probably will—remember: Some things belong to God alone. And for today, it is enough to hold tightly to the things He has already revealed.

Just in case you forgot… no, it isn’t easy. Some days you just keep going because…