How to Experience God’s Wonder by Exploring Mysteries
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Mysteries can lead you to God’s wonder if you allow them to expand your perspective. You may be both attracted to mysteries and repelled by them. It can be intriguing to encounter mysteries you don’t understand and want to learn more about, yet it can also be scary or threatening to deal with the unknown. People sometimes ignore mysteries rather than risk the mess of having them challenge their worldviews. However, if you approach mysteries with courage, they can point you toward God’s wonder. Mysteries call you to step out of your comfort zone and dance with your doubts and faith toward what may be something wonderful!
You can welcome wonder into your life by opening your mind to mysteries. Use these tips to help you explore mysteries and discover wonder in the process:
Go beyond limits. Be willing to explore beyond the limits of what you know, what you understand, and what you think is possible. Let mysteries challenge you to expand your worldview, opening doors for you to discover something new and awe-inspiring about God.
Explore public mysteries. Let public mysteries – such as UFO sightings, reports of miracles, and crop circles – spark your curiosity to learn more about them. Don’t hesitate to discuss mysteries with others. Learn from each other’s perspectives as you all consider something mysterious that goes beyond your individual opinions. Pray about mysteries in the news, asking God to show you what he wants you to learn from them that can strengthen your faith.
Explore personal mysteries. God may sometimes send mysterious signs and wonders into your life to encourage you and strengthen your faith. For example, God may answer your prayer about something by sending you a message in a dream about it. You can interpret that dream message to discover its meaning with the Holy Spirit’s help. Whenever you experience a personal mystery that seems to be from God, don’t be afraid to prayerfully explore it.
Investigate mysteries wisely. Keep your mind open when you’re investigating mysteries, but also follow the Holy Spirit’s guidance to respond with wisdom. Guard yourself against deception by evaluating the mysteries you encounter according to the advice in 1 John 4:1-3: “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God…”.
Let mysteries from God strengthen your faith in him. The faith you express in response to mysteries will help you build a closer relationship with God, which will help you perceive more of the wonder of his work.
Learn more in my book Wake Up to Wonder about how exploring mysteries can lead you to God’s wonder.
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