So, my very dear friends, don’t get thrown off course. Every desirable and beneficial gift comes out of heaven. The gifts are rivers of light cascading down from the Father of Light. There is nothing deceitful in God, nothing two-faced, nothing fickle. He brought us to life using the true Word, showing us off as the crown of all his creatures.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
A friend of mine recently had to surrender the 4-month-old foster child she and her family had nurtured since he was just seven days old. The court apparently determined that it was in this baby’s best interest to be placed with another family who had adopted his older sibling. Imagine this couple’s anguish as they counted off the days until the precious child that they had hoped to possibly adopt was set to leave their home…probably forever. I am sure that they pled with God to change this. I have no doubt that they hoped that even at the eleventh hour, they would get a phone call and learn that this was all a mistake…that they could keep “their” baby. But in the end, the child was taken from their home and placed in the care of another family.
It would be easy to question God on this one…to wring hands and cry out, “Why, LORD…WHY?” There are plenty of situations and circumstances where we are tempted to ask God, “Why?”…
- When a relationship is “circling the drain” or a loved one is terminally ill…
- When you are bullied or cannot find a job and the bill collectors are at your door like wolves…
- When you cannot a handle on the balance of studies, work, and extracurricular life…
- When you cannot seem to lose those last pounds and inches despite your best efforts…or you have health issues and can’t seem to get well and stay that way…
- When children of all ages get Ebola in an African country and die…
- When pets and people are abused and neglected…
- When people in your own community are homeless and hungry…
This scripture passage reminds us to “keep the faith” and “stay the course”! We may not see desirable and beneficial gifts coming out of heaven like rivers of light cascading down from the Father of Light…but they are there, all the same. We may not understand God’s thought process - or His methods. He may seem to be fickle and two-faced…aloof and apathetic. But nothing could be further from the truth.
God loves us…always and forever. He wants nothing but His very best for us…we just don’t always know what that is! When God allows us to experience a heartache or a challenge, it isn’t because He wants to hurt us. God wants us to lean on Him…to trust Him in all things…to understand that He can work anything and everything together for His good purposes.
This is so hard…I wouldn’t for a minute suggest that there is anything easy about hurtful or difficult situations of any kind – nor diminish what you are experiencing in any way. But I can tell you from personal experience that even in your worst pain, God is working. He is preparing gifts and blessings for you that you cannot even imagine. The outcome may not be at all what you had hoped or planned…but it will be perfect – and it might just be better! Ultimately, God will prevail and bring about His flawlessness. If we can just trust in this and continue to believe in Him, we will see this displayed in our own lives.
We can find it incredibly hard to be grateful in times of trouble, hardship and suffering. But these are the times when we should double our efforts to thank God for His amazing love and care. He will meet our needs and bless us in this more than we can ever imagine. Where is God working for your good in a potentially hurtful or hopeless situation? Have you thanked Him for His presence and precision? Isn’t it time you did?
©2014 Debbie Robus
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