Three little words can change your life.
“I love you.”
When your spouse spoke those words for the first time, something changed. You realized that you had crossed a threshold and there was no going back to the relationship you had before those words were spoken.
“You are fired.”
If you’ve heard these words, they may have come as a surprise and shattered your world. Losing a job can crush our families, our sense of the future, and even our identity.
“It is cancer.”
Getting a diagnosis of a potentially deadly disease is a moment someone never forgets. Surreal, scary, and shocking barely begin to describe the torrent of emotions that flow through and out of one’s body.
But, there are also three words that can change your life from death to life and darkness to light. They represent a pivot point in a story and a turning point in a life.
Those three words are “oh but God.”
WATCH NOW: Oh But God | Davy Flowers
RELATED CONTENT: Davy Flowers Spotlights God’s Power to Change Things in "Oh But God"
These words are the title of Davy Flowers’ popular song. Flowers uses these words to describe the power of God to transform our lives as we encounter Jesus and the Gospel. In her opening verses, she sings,
“Crushed by the weight of my failure
Living the lie I created
Digging my grave without knowing
Oh But God”
Those three words flip the entire narrative of that story. After singing “Oh But God,” Flowers goes on to sing,
“Rich in mercy
How He loves me
Too much to let me stay lost”
This is the same truth of the Gospel that Paul communicated famously in Ephesians 2:3-5. “All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else. But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)”
In the middle of that passage, we go from being subject to God’s anger to recipients of God’s grace. How? “But God” - that’s how!
“Oh But God” Changes Everything
When you introduce the word “but” into a story or a conversation, it changes the entire story.
We read that in Joseph’s story in the book of Genesis. He endured tremendous adversity at the hands of others (especially his own family) including murder plots, slavery, wrongful conviction, false imprisonment, and betrayal. However, in Genesis 50:20, he said, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.”
WATCH NOW: Oh But God Devotional | Davy Flowers
We read about Asaph’s adversity in Psalm 73. He cried out to God in the midst of his struggle, as he watched the proud and arrogant prospering in the midst of their evil and wicked behavior. Evil seems to be flourishing, while he is struggling as he pursues righteous living. Asaph poured out his frustration and anger to God. His venting to God flips in verse 26, when he says, “My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.”
The death and resurrection of Jesus is the ultimate “Oh But God” example. In Acts 13, the Apostle Paul is recounting the Gospel during a visit to a synagogue in modern-day Turkey. There he said, “When they had done all that the prophecies said about him, they took him down from the cross and placed him in a tomb. But God raised him from the dead!“
As I was taking a walk yesterday, I was listening to “Oh But God.” The song inspired me to start thinking about the “Oh But God” moments in the Bible. These examples I’ve listed here (along with many others came to mind). Then, my mind went to my own life. What stories could I tell which included an “Oh But God” moment?
When my wife and I were facing a financial crisis, and we received a last-minute interest-free loan from a friend
When my wife was pregnant and almost miscarried with our twins, and the pregnancy was preserved with an emergency surgery.
When I was in the middle of a panic attack, God calmed me enough to let me sleep 3 hours before I had to go to my new job.
Remembering these “Oh But God” stories from the past helped me to have greater hope about the difficult stories I’m living today.
Writing Your Own “Oh But God” Testimony
I want to encourage you to listen to “Oh But God” as soon as you can. But, don’t just listen to it and then go on to the next song. I’d encourage you to listen to this song a few times.
As you do, think about the stories and men and women you’ve read about in the Bible. Whose story only makes sense because of an “Oh But God” moment?
Then, take a walk like I did and think about your life story. Where is the phrase “Oh But God” the only appropriate statement to make sense of what has happened to you and through you?
Once you think of some personal examples, what if you created a post on Facebook or Instagram that was entitled “Oh But God” where you shared about Davy Flowers’ song and encouraged your friends and followers to share their “Oh But God” stories? Because of your walk and reflection, yours could be the first comment.
Who knows who you might inspire and encourage? Who knows how far that post might reach?
I wonder what God might do through you as you share your hope in Him and encourage others to look to His intervention in the middle of their struggles today!
Scott Savage is a pastor and a writer, and yes he does have the best last name ever. He leads Cornerstone Church in Prescott, Arizona. Scott is married to Dani and they are the proud parents of three children. He loves helping hurting people forgive others through his Free to Forgive course and you can read more of his writing at scottsavagelive.com.
