We now know who will be playing in the Super Bowl in two weeks.  It is a rematch from a few years ago between the Giants and the Patriots.  Don't worry.  This whole piece is not about football.  But each team won very exciting games today.  Both teams were only a few plays away from being out of the playoffs also.  I will say that my expectations were for these two teams playing in the big game.  You know the Patriots are going to be good.  We also watched the Giants get hot over the last two months.  Our major problem is we now have to live through the two weeks of hype before the game begins.  I am reserving my final prediction for much closer to game time.

We mentioned that both teams won in very tough contests.  Only a few plays separate the winners and losers today.  One game ended with a rare mistake on a kick.  The other game included some strange bounces of the ball.  Sometimes you wonder how all of this works out.  I do not know with any certainty whether or not God has a great interest in football.  My view is that He has a few more things to deal with than the outcome of a game.  But there are times that make you wonder about divine intervention in sporting events.  Most famous football plays are labeled with a Catholic nickname.  Baptists are left to refer to hockey fights for their vocabulary.  My point is there do seem to be times when God has some role in the outcome of a game or event.  I have no explanation as to why this may be true only that observation and experience tells me that things can happen out of the ordinary. 

Providence is our term for how God works everything out for His good in our world.  Not only does God see the future but He is radically involved in our present.  He is not an occasional participant in the affairs of men.  God's very nature says He is part of our every waking or sleeping moment.  We may not always see this in action but be assured of its reality.  Our hope in this life is much more than making wishes.  We can trust God who is bigger than life no matter how out of control it feels.  Our conditions do not dictate any limits on God's power.  Our worst difficulties cannot sway God from being at His best.  How we live in any given moment is largely affected by our vision of God as caring and powerful.  He must be both in order to bring about trust.

Life is the laboratory in terms of our faith.  Answers are easy inside the church walls.  It's the rest of the week that tests whether what we believe matches what we may say.  Jonah discovers that he really cannot run away from the presence of God.  This journey will be a painful to say the least.  We can learn from him so we avoid those same mistakes.  There is much more at stake in our life than who wins or loses a game.  You matter to God so be sure your life counts.  God doesn't give up on any of us even when we give up on Him.  That is what grace is all about.  Failure does not need to be defined on whether or not we disobey.  Real failure is missing His pursuit born of grace.  Let's do what we can to allow that patience of God to work its way into our world.  Our game of life is not ever over until our time is up.  God is here and active if only you open your eyes a bit more to see it.  Don't be like Jonah.  He knew God was busy yet chose to ignore it.  My guess is if you ask for His help then you will see everything in a whole new light.

Bro. Trey