“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28
Have you ever struggled with this verse? I have!
I look at the Christians who are being persecuted, tortured, and killed for their faith. I think about cancer. Fatal childhood diseases. Crime and the people who are victimized by it. And I wonder how… how can God work good from those situations?
I think part of the problem is that God defines good differently than I do. He sees the long-term good, the ripple effects that may come years down the road. I just see the here and now.
No one likes receiving vaccinations… yet they are for our good.
No one likes being disciplined – or disciplining their kids – yet it’s for our good.
Maybe God’s good is similar. It’s not necessarily what we think of as good, because – let’s face it – we define good as comfort and pleasure, but we can trust God knows what is good long term. Just like vaccines can prevent serious illness or even death, the hardships we endure now can be used by God to make something great and beautiful.
We just have to trust that God knows what He’s doing.
Candle Sutton 