“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. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called, he also justified, he also glorified. What then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can we against us?” Romans 8:28-31
For years I have had Romans 8:28 on my bedroom wall and now it sits on our fridge. It was there to remind me that in difficult times God will turn it for good. This is such a great message of HOPE. Pastor Luis Gutierrez’s sermon gave me a fresh new perspective on this verse. Yes, God is good, and he does come through for us when we are faced with a difficult situation but what are we doing to experience His goodness in those situations? Do we do what we normally do when faced with hard times, shut down, react in anger, escape (fight or flight), keep busy and avoid confronting the situation and expect God to come through for us? I feel silly even writing this out but unfortunately, I have been guilty of this so many times. I have pushed God away instead of leaning into Him. I have made the situation even worse by dealing with it my own way and then got angry with God for not coming through for me!
The answer is in the next verse. He calls us to be conformed into the image of His Son so instead of rebelling and throwing a tantrum, I will seek the Lord first and see what it is that He wants to change in me through this situation. What is it that He wants me to see or learn? If only this was easy. As quoted by Pastor Luis, even David struggled with this when he says in Psalm 13:1-3; “How long shall I take counsel in my soul? How long shall I be the master of my decisions? How long should I deal with things my own way?”. One wants to act in the way one thinks. But as you read through the Psalms, David goes through a process of gaining Gods perspective in his difficult situation. As he waits on the Lord his attitude changes. Even though the situation remains, he has a new divine perspective. This perspective leads us to experience His goodness.
Father, give us wisdom to seek you first and not seek counsel within ourselves. The peace and goodness we seek to experience can only be found in you. We surrender all our life and every difficult situation we might be battling with, to you. In Jesus Name.
Amen.
By Christabel Joy Seneviratne