God is God

And he had James the brother of John put to death with a sword.  When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. Now it was during the days of Unleavened Bread.  Acts 12:2-3 (NASB)

I like precedences.  I like to look at the awesome ways God has worked before and use that as an assurance that He's going to work the same way again, showing Himself in incredible ways.

He has never allowed us to miss a bill.  He works that way for everyone, right?  He has given people new cars when they needed them.  He'll do that for us, right?  He has miraculously healed people of horrible diseases.  So, He'll do it for a friend I'm praying for, right?

In Acts 12, we see a completely different picture.  James was killed.  One of Jesus' inner circle.  One of His closest friends.  In a single unceremonious verse we are told of the end of James' life - he was killed by Herod.  Period.  The end. 

Not long after that, Peter is arrested, and the intention is to put him to death as well in an effort to please the Jews and make Herod's position a little more stable.  The rest of the story shows that, thanks to a divinely orchestrated plan, Peter does not die.  Instead he escapes and goes right back to work. 

Why did God spare Peter and not James?  Wasn't James being effective?  Obviously he was, since Herod considered him worthy of arresting.  Couldn't he have continued to be effective?  Couldn't his family have been spared the grief of his death?

This story reminds me yet again that - guess what - God is God!  His ways are not my ways!  His thoughts are not my thoughts!  (Isaiah 55:8-9) He has a plan that I cannot comprehend.  Sometimes grief comes.  That doesn't mean His hand is not in it.  Sometimes wonderful things happen.  That does not mean He's only working in those times. 

My challenge is to remember this and to rejoice always.  My week hasn't been a super one.  There have been a lot of discouragements and frustrations.  But, He's still God.  He still loves me, and He is still in control.  He's still working, both in me and in the world around me.  His will is going to be accomplished - will I rejoice in His will whether I'm ecstatically happy or crushingly grieved?