“Who am I, O Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? And as if this were not enough in your sight, O Sovereign Lord, you have also spoken about the future of the house of your servant. Is this your usual way of dealing with man, O Sovereign Lord? What more can I say to you? For you know your servant, O Sovereign Lord. For the sake of your word and according to your will, you’ve done this great thing and made it known to your servant. How great you are, O Sovereign Lord!”
King David’s prayer, 2 Samuel 7:19b-22a
About a year ago I bought a used table saw. I’m not a self-professed home craftsman and had always gotten by with a circular saw and a jigsaw for my home repair projects. But I decided that a table saw would give me the ability to cut lumber in ways that my other tools couldn’t. The main benefit of a table saw is that its powerful blade and adjustable guide allow you to cut long pieces of lumber with a very straight and even edge.
I’d watched or helped other men use table saws before, but it wasn’t until I had my own and started using it by myself that I experienced a much more reverent respect for its power. I gained a respectable fear of its power, because I knew that if I wasn’t careful or was nonchalant in my use of it, I could quickly lose a finger or even cause myself a fatal injury. This tool gave me a power to do good work, to create new things, but I had to be very careful in using it because of its tremendous power to do harm to me.
In King David’s prayer in 2 Samuel 7, he spoke reverentially to God, referring to Him again and again as “Sovereign Lord.” David was utterly amazed that God was using him for His purpose and empowering him and his family and even telling him what He would accomplish through him and his offspring in the future. David was awed by God’s power and humbled by God’s use of him.
We often lack this reverential fear of God in the way He uses us and works in our lives. It is one thing to be awed by God’s work in creation and His works described in the Bible, but it is another thing entirely to fear Him in how He works in our own lives, in specific personal events, and in response to our prayers. I have had a couple of people tell me to be careful what I pray for, because they have experienced God answering prayers in ways that they did not expect and which made their lives more challenging or wrestled control over their lives from them, and they had a tangible reverence for God’s power and His faithfulness in answering prayers. Like me using my table saw, if I were nonchalant in my use of that great power of God answering prayer, I might put myself into a dangerous and potentially life-changing position.
I often say a prayer, called the Prayer of Abandonment, which is a risk-taking prayer. Essentially it says, “I abandon myself into Your hands; do with me what you will.” I wonder about some people’s fear of saying this prayer out of their respect for God’s power and faithfulness in answering prayer. My decision to repeat this prayer frequently is based on my faith that God will be with me in whatever He calls me to and that if I fear what He may do with my life, then I am trying to control my own life and I am not really interested in pleasing God or serving His purpose. If we say we are God’s servants and then aren’t willing to serve Him in whatever He asks, then we are liars and our faith is counterfeit.
That table saw can help me to make a straight cut that I could never do under my own guidance using a circular saw or jigsaw. It guides the wood in my hands as I push it forward. I am the one pushing it, but it is the guide that keeps it aligned and on track as the powerful blade rips through the wood creating a smooth and even edge. When it is finished, I marvel at how straight and smooth the board is. I couldn’t have made it that way on my own. And I think the same about God’s power and work in my life.
Respect and trust in God’s power to use you and humbly offer yourself to Him, and surely you will be amazed and grateful at what He does with you in His hands.