SECRET THINGS

“The secret things belong to the LORD our God but the things revealed belong to us and to or children forever; that we may follow all the words of this law.”
Deuteronomy 29:29

Only one President of the United States has ever resigned, that being Richard Nixon. His resignation was based alone on a matter in which he attempted to cover up. The Watergate scandal became the headline during the early 1970’s as it worked to break news concerning a break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex. It was Nixon and his administration that attempted to cover up the committee’s involvement. However, the end result of the scandal eventually led not only to the resignation of Nixon on August 9, 1974, but also the arrest of others working in relation with him to hide what had been done. Call it sloppy cover up, call it a traitor in the camp, or call it karma. Whatever you call it, this well known event in history only goes to show us that what is done in secret is never hidden from Adonai.
Deuteronomy 29:29 informs us first that the secret things belong to Adonai. It is true that many problems within the family, the neighborhood, or nation stem from root issues we are unaware of. There is a spiritual battle going on all around us that we may not always see with the human eye. We see the affects many times, but not always the root. For example, we see the person sitting at the bar downing drink after drink, but we do not see the root issue of rejection or hurt that brings the person to drinking. The same was true of me. People saw my addiction to pornography but did not see the pain, the rejection, the loneliness that brought me back over and over again.
The verse continues on, though, to state, “…but the things revealed belong to us and our children forever.” As I read this portion of the verse I am reminded of a worship song’s lyrics that state, open the eyes of my heart Lord, I want to see You. As I see the person at the bar, or the one coming out of a porn shop, or what have you, I find myself first fighting judgment. One would think I wouldn’t judge having been in those shoes myself, but it is a fight still. Nevertheless, it is my duty to pray for that person. Not knowing what always to pray, my first prayer is for Adonai to open my eyes to what the root issue is. What is it that draws this person there, or makes them act a certain way, or results in their deep pain? As Adonai opens my eyes to these factors, then I find myself in a better place and with deeper understanding towards how to pray. It is then as I intercede in prayer for others that He can reveal both the root of the problem and its solution.
How does this relate to Watergate? The secret things were hidden at first. The who, why, how, where and when were all hidden from the public. But down underneath the surface level, the root cause was continuing to fester. Eventually with the right discernment, the right slip up, and the right opening of the eyes, the nation was no longer in the dark and knew what action to take. I use this relatable illustration to point the same in the spiritual. I urge you to pray for your family, your friends, your neighbor, and your nation. We are in a spiritual battle daily. Only when we ask Adonai to open our eyes to the deeper things will we be allowed to see the root of what is hurting those around us. As much as we desire freedom from what is holding us down, so we should also desire their freedom as well. Let us pray. Let us pray for them. And let us pray for opened eyes.

Deuteronomy 29:16-29