Blinders



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

Someone very dear to me is going through a horrible experience right now. To protect her privacy I will call her Ann. The situation that she faces now is the stuff of nightmares. There are several possible outcomes and in Ann's shoes I can imagine that I would be allowing those awful eventualities to creep in and ruin even my best moments.

Not Ann. Ann is not a look at the bright side, leap of faith kind of person either. Ann is an ignorer.

In years past this has made me insane! You can't just put on your blinders, pick and choose your truths and decide that is the whole reality. Life just does not work that way. I hate the expression, “it is what it is” but God help me, that is too often all any of us can say. Again, not Ann. She refuses to see what is, creating for herself, an alternate scenario and literally choosing to believe that is what is. Do you see where that could be annoying and frustrating to the people around her? It is also tragically sad when you know why Ann has chosen this particular coping mechanism.

Today, however, Ann's quirk, if you will, is the perfect illustration of God working all things for our good. Previously, Ann's view has simply been denial. It's been coverup. Today because she has that unique skill she can look at her current problem and see only good outcomes. She can access the situation and walk away hopeful because, as is her way, she won't look at the reality, the truth that this could take a decidedly dark turn. In this case, Ann's odd little viewpoint will enable her to do what she has to do to get through this challenge.

For years I've read this verse and occasionally been able to see the truth of it, to see something I felt as awful because it was awful, turning and working for my good. Never before have I seen something so carefully honed, so fine tuned and so totally crazy working for good. Indeed, when God says, “all things” He means, all things.

No matter what you see in yourself or another person that seems beyond hope or salvage, remember, God works all things for good for those who love and trust Him.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Not Really god, where are you?

Then they called on the name of Baal from morning to noon.”Baal answer us!” they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. And they danced around the altar they had made. At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder!” he said, “Surely he is a god! Perhaps his is deep in thought, or busy or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.” 1 Kings 18:26b-27 Those who know me would be quick to tell you that I am a bit sarcastic. It’s a quality that I have passed on to my children and even some of my grandchildren. Some days I feel a little guilty. Is that really a quality that God wants to see in me? Certainly that cannot be my go to attitude but there are times that it comes in quite nicely. This morning, reading a totally unrelated verse, I was reminded of this account in the first book of Kings. (It begins at verse 16 and continues to the end of the chapter. I highly recommend reading it if you haven’t and it if you have reread it. It’s great!) In this p
Read more

My Offering

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also love you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. Ephesians 5:1-2 Standing in my kitchen, I was praying that what I was putting together for a friend would convey what I want her to know, that I so deeply appreciate her. As my mind spun around what can I add? What would she really like? Is this enough? I had to laugh. That is so often my prayer, “Lord, I don’t have anything to give. I don’t give enough. What can I possibly do?” and on, and on and…. Well, you get it, I’m sure. May I just say, GOD IS GOOD! (Yes, I know the caps mean I’m shouting. Yes, I am shouting!) While I was preparing my “gift” I was thinking about how often I feel that I don’t do enough, for friends, for family, for my hubby and certainly for God. I had music playing, another pretty typical occurrence. The Third Day song, “Offering” started to play and I started singing along.
Read more

God Only Knows

    Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say it again; Rejoice! Let you gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7   Anyone who knows me, know that I am very skeptical of anything that presents itself as a formula to get closer to God. It’s as if we have to follow certain steps in a certain order to get His attention or receive His mercy. I am much more an advocate of crying out from the naked, transparent depths of my heart. Trusting that the God who created me and loves me is not checking the order of my steps as I run to Him.           Today I’m going a little bit of a sidestep from that. This morning while praying three phrases came to my mind and heart and immediately I knew they weren’t just for me. Som
Read more