There have been times that God has walked me through the How of His work. Though I enjoy that journey, I also see a danger in it. I can easily become confident in the How, and forget about the Who. Even though I know that people change, I often expect God to respond exactly the same way in every situation. Then, once I have figured out "how He works", I can use Him much like any other machine and plug Him in at the right time, in the right way, to get the expected result. And, if that result does not happen... I have someone else to blame, because I did it "right".
The danger in the How is that it quickly moves me from a dependence upon God to a dependence upon my own understanding. This goes directly against His words in Proverbs 3, where He tells me not to lean on my own understanding, but upon Him instead.
I am much better off spending my time trying to better understand the Who, the source of all things, rather than the How. For, in my darkest hours it is the How that deserts me. No matter how hard I look or pray, I never see any way out. My mind is at a loss to even conceive a solution.
In those hours I am left with the Who. The person of God and what I know of His character is all that remains. And so, I still enjoy the occasional pursuit of the How (let's face it, God does things in some extremely creative and interesting ways). But, even more then the How, I dedicate myself to a pursuit of Who. If I only have a certain amount of time and energy, I will give the lion's share to better understanding God's character.
How about you... do you find yourself more concerned with the How of God's work, or the God Who works on your behalf?
[To the grammar-lovers a different question... should I have used Whom instead of Who?]
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