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Wednesday, October 22, 2025

New Hampshire wetlands
Foliage on a New Hampshire pond.
Click to enlarge photo

"When We Fail To Understand"

Message summary: Although we know that the trials in life will work out for our good according to Romans 8:28, we earnestly want to know how and when. We want to understand! The answers to most of these questions are simply not provided. So why do we expend so much energy or become anxiety-ridden about those things which we can do nothing about and those things that will never come about in the first place. Yet we so often do! Let us keep trusting today even when we don't understand.

Listen to our message on your audio player.

"But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task" (Psalm 73:16). "I heard, but I did not understand. So I asked, 'My lord, what will the outcome of all this be?' He replied, 'Go your way, Daniel, because the words are closed up and sealed until the time of the end'" (Daniel 12:8,9).

This week we are considering lines from "Christ Our Wisdom", a song that we enjoy singing since the words bring tremendous assurance in our daily living for Christ. We share a link to the song with each message so you can listen if you so choose and we will daily post the entire four stanzas.

Today we consider a line from the song that says, "When We Fail To Understand".  How many of you have been through or are even now going through a situation you just don't understand? You may even say, "Why me?"

Pastor E.V. Hill concluded when his wife died, "What is the Lord saying? There's only one message: 'Trust me. Even when you don't understand and can't comprehend: trust me!'"

I find great comfort in the phrase from a classic hymn: "They who trust Him wholly, find Him wholly true." Yes, dear friend, He's wholly true and can bring peace during life's most difficult hour when we fully trust Him.

Many of us can identify with the thoughts of Asaph in Psalm 73, "But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task". Have to ever grown weary trying to understand something?

At the conclusion of his book Daniel expresses himself in a way which many of us can identify, particularly when it comes to some of the more difficult prophetic portions of God’s Word. "I heard, but I did not understand". I’ve been there before and will surely be there again. I’ve read a Scripture portion and wondered, "What does this mean and when will it happen?" I also ask myself the same question in regard to life's events when I am personally impacted by a trial.

Although we know that things will work out for our good according to Romans 8:28, we so much want to know how and when. We want to understand! The answers to most of these questions are simply not provided. So why do we expend so much energy or allow ourselves to become anxiety-ridden about those things which we can do nothing about or those things that will never come to pass in the first place. Yet we so often do!

We need to keep moving forward in the direction we feel God is leading and trust Him to provide the answers or peace about those unresolved troubles along the way. The apostle Paul, facing a time of great uncertainty said to the Ephesian elders, "And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me" (Acts 20:22,23).

Such is the life of faith! Let us keep trusting God's plan for our lives even when we don't understand. The book of Daniel ends with this statement. "As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance" (Daniel 12:13).

Let us also receive this word today in our own lives. One day we will shed these feeble bodies that are prone to sickness, weariness, aging, disease, death and the temptation to sin. Praise God, one glorious day we will rise in our glorified, immortal bodies to receive our fully allotted inheritance, not by our works of righteousness, but according to His grace and mercy! What a day, glorious day that will be!


Be encouraged today!  Hebrews 3:13


Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Praying manDaily prayer: Father, we don’t always know where our present steps will take us on life’s journey, but we do know they are leading us heavenward as we walk with You.  No matter the depth of testing or our lack of understanding You promise that You will be with us. Crooked paths and rough terrain will be part of the journey, but ultimately we will enter heaven’s throne. There we will no longer regret things from our past or have questions about our future, for we know that we will spend eternity forever worshiping You. Grant us peace and joy for our journey here below, amidst the sickness, suffering and death as we anticipate our future eternal inheritance. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.


Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources

"Christ Our Wisdom"  Watch on YouTube  Sovereign Grace Music  As best I can determine this is from the group that originally sang the song:

Christ our wisdom, we are humbled
When You hide Your ways from us
You have purposes unnumbered
Each one good and glorious
Help us trust when we grow weary
Free us from our anxious thoughts
Give us grace to see more clearly
You are God and we are not

[Verse 2]
Christ our wisdom, be our gladness
When we fail to understand
You ordain all joy and sadness
To fulfill Your perfect plan
Help us know You rule with power
Over every raging flood
In our most uncertain hour
You are God and we are loved

[Verse 3]
Christ our wisdom, we will follow
Though the way ahеad is veiled
As we journеy through the shadows
Grant us faith where sight has failed
Help us cling to Your commandments
Strengthened by Your faithful Word
We will never be abandoned
You are God and we are Yours

[Verse 4]
Christ our wisdom we adore You
For the beauty of the cross
Once in foolishness we scorned You
But Your blood has ransomed us
Help us sing the endless mercies
Of Your humble heart to save
Christ our wisdom, Christ our glory
You are God forever praised

"Trust His Heart"  Watch on YouTube   NewSong  This older song also powerfully addresses today's theme of our lack of understanding when going through a trial.

God is too wise to be mistaken. 
God is too good to be unkind.
So when you don't understand,
When you don't see His plan,
When you can't trace His hand,
Trust His heart.

"We'll Understand It Better By And By"   Watch on YouTube  Gaither Homecoming Singers   An even older song!


Last week we traveled up to New England to see the fall foliage. We visited a number of sites and rode several bike trails. All this week we are sharing photos from our trip.

We were delighted to meet Betsey who is a DE reader whom we've exchanged conversation via email over the past year and finally met in person. We enjoyed a delicious soup over lunch called "Mulligatawny". After getting back home I went online for recipes and made our version of it a few nights ago. Betsey lives at RiverWoods in Exeter, New Hampshire, a life plan retirement community, which is quite extensive and beautiful. Her husband died about a year and a half ago, and she moved to this lovely setting about four months ago. We enjoy meeting our readers and often give thanks for those who include us in their daily reading list. We've also come to know Betsey's brother Tom and his wife, Priscilla, who will soon reside in RiverWoods as well.

Nantucket basket
Nantucket basket
We saw a number of Nantucket Lightship Baskets at RiverWoods including two in Betsey's apartment made by her dad. They are a type of basket originating, in the 19th century on Nantucket Island lightships. Lightship baskets are made from rattan and wood, have an odd number of staves, a solid wooden base, a nailed and lashed rim, a rattan weaver, and are woven over a mould. Oak, pine, and ash are the most traditional type of wood used on baskets, but today many other types are utilized, such as cherry and ebony.

River near Exeter NH
A river near Exeter NH.
This is the background to our photo above with Betsey.
Sometimes you just can't find the scenes you want in real time!
Click to enlarge photo

Maple processor
The new state of the art maple syrup processor at Ben's Sugar Shack & The Maple Station Market. I met Ben who started the business. During this year's syrup season through early spring they made over 11,000 gallons of maple syrup!  Meet Ben.
Click to enlarge photo

New Hampshire lake
A lake in New Hampshire
Click to enlarge photo

Brooksyne's 70th birthday gathering last night

Birthday friends
A handful of friends at Brooksyne's gathering last night. If you're a Facebook follower you've probably seen some of Ester's posts (which she hid from me) telling of the party she was hosting for my 70th and inviting people to send me a card for my 70th! I insisted I wanted no attention brought to my birthday, but she refused to listen so I agreed to let her invite just enough to fit around our extended table. Indeed, we had a great time, and I went to bed more tired than if I had planned the event myself (that surprised me, but after all I entered a new decade yesterday!) Ester really did a great job supported by these ladies in the photo and many others who helped out in various ways (not in photo). Thank you, Ester, and thank you to other kind friends.

Brooksyne at 70
No, I am not Mother Goose in this photo. Ester found this hat (it depicts the poop emoji) and she insisted I put it on for a photo. When the emoji first appeared I thought it to be symbolic of ice cream or a Hershey kiss, so I was freely including it in birthday greetings to various folks on Facebook. I invited them to go out and enjoy (what I thought was the ice cream.) Ester came across it one day and was horrified to find that I was using the emoji in such a way and set me straight about what the emoji meant. Obviously, I was rather embarrassed and she hasn't let me forget!

Audrey
In the midst of our conversation, which included twelve of us at the long table last night, Nick (second from left in photo above) was working in his new iphone 17 camera by surreptitiously taking photos as we conversed with one another. In this photo it appears as a picture with Audrey praying, but in fact, she was simply resting her hands in front of her and he caught her with her eyes closed. When he showed us the picture we all had a good laugh, especially Audrey.

70th birthday card
A number of Facebook friends, family members, church friends, and daily encouragement readers sent me a pile of cards. How Ester got the word out secretly I don't know, and due to my poor understanding of technology I'll never find out, but I was deeply touched by the nice cards and kind words. The one above arrived today and redirected my thinking of turning 70 - I think I will embrace the perfect 10's and smile as I'm entering an 8th decade of my life, as Stephen likes to remind me!

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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version and a variety of other versions.



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