Hey, friends!
Do you have questions for God? Hard questions? Broken-hearted, confused questions? I do. Sometimes, I don't understand what God does in His active will and what He allows to happen in His permissive will, and I've had to wrestle with God over those situations many, many times. Is that true for you, too?
How could this circumstance be in any way part of a good plan?
Because it doesn't make sense to me…
I love that Lysa normalizes the wonderment of how really good, kind, and lovely people can suffer horrendously and die and others who destructively go crashing through life terribly harming others with evil intent have what seem to be smooth and easy lives.
"I know God is patient wanting everyone to repent and turn from their sin… It's His patience that makes space for people who haven't yet turned their heart toward Him." ~ Lysa
That doesn't always ease the pain we go through, though, does it? Sometimes, it seems like God is unfair. What we do with, what we conclude about those circumstances and who God is shapes our relationship with Him.
"What I believe about God's true nature will deeply affect the way I process the really hard things that happen in life." ~ Lysa
Our devastations fit into His love story. He saw them coming, knew that we would suffer, and He also sees the redemption He has planned for us and those we love. That changes everything! God sees the whole picture, all of history from beginning to end. Does that help you trust Him and love Him in seasons of pain? It does for me. Looking to Jesus and hoping and trusting in His goodness is the only way to endure in joy when life includes loss and heartbreak. He is how we can be thankful and enjoy this beautiful and brutal life.
"Being open to the joys of life even in the midst of hardships feels like such a beautiful definition of hope." ~ Lysa
If we trust Him, we can release our grip on the outcomes we want and instead submit to His way, His plan.
"If I believe God allows harsh realities for no good reason, I'll want to try to control my circumstances rather than trust His plan because what I don't trust, I will try to control." ~ Lysa
Have you been the third servant hiding away the talent? I have far more than I want to admit. Because fear has often been a tyrant in my life, I've way too many times held back from doing what the Lord had called me to do and missed out on the blessings that come from obeying and trusting Him wholeheartedly through fear. If you're someone who's gone through a lot of hardship which led to constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop, I get it. Let's lean in today and believe that God is trustworthy. His Word is rock solid. Obeying Him is always always the right choice.
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