Good morning,
I
was talking to one of our neighbors last week who has two young
children, has just found another job and is concerned about his
retirement benefits. Losing his last job put his retirement program at
risk. How could trouble like this be a good thing? I don’t know enough
about his particular situation to know how this will work out for him,
but I do know that as one of God’s kids, I can look forward to the
benefits of all this confusion and fear that are part of our lives right
now. Paul was an expert in this area, and he gave the folks in Corinth
exactly what they needed to see the good that God had planned for their
lives. For starters, he told them that this was all for their
benefit. As we go through these learning experiences we discover God’s
grace in our own lives and are able to demonstrate how good God is to
those who trust him. When we stay focused on who God is and what God is
doing, our joy and thanksgiving to God for his goodness to us will
quickly get our co-workers and neighbors attention.
When we are
not giving up, but growing up in our faith, the God seekers around us
will show up. Our bodies may be dying, but we can still see beautiful
sunsets, majestic mountains and laughing children and sing along with
them because our spirits get refreshed and renewed every day. When we
have learned that God is the center of our universe, not us, then what
we experience becomes part of an adventure, not part of a personal
nightmare. Sure we have troubles, but they are a part of our growing
up. Alas, we discover that our patterns of the past are broken and
gone, but then we have the joy of knowing that the Lord has arranged all
this for his glory and our benefit. Our Good Shepherd will lead us up
new paths that take us closer and closer to our eternal home. When we
stop staring at ourselves or our enemies and keep our eyes on Jesus, we
will be able to see through the mists of time the glory of our eternal
home. When this part of life is over, and we haven’t given up, we will
see the glory of our Father, the glory of our Savior and share in their
glory for eternity.
2 Corinthians 4:15 All of this is
for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people,
there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more
glory. 16 That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our
spirits are being renewed every day. 17 For our present troubles are
small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that
vastly outweighs them and will last forever!
Roy Wisner
