All Things
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. – Romans 8:28.
Before I was old enough to have a driver’s license my parents had bought by grandfather’s car for me to have when I turned sixteen years old. On my first trip by myself after receiving my driver’s license I had a shocking experience. While driving at 40 to 50 miles per hour on a two lane unmarked country road with no shoulders I decided I would light a cigarette. I pushed in the cigarette lighter and while reaching for a pack of cigarettes swerved off the road into the ditch nearly turning over and then swerved back on to the roadway. No damage was done to my car but a message had been communicated to me which I believe now came from God. As a result of that incident I never again tried to light up a cigarette in a car and it was the beginning of the end of my smoking.
Almost having a severe accident is a frightening thing but out of the almost accident that I had God has brought much good. Some of those things are obvious and some are not so obvious. The most obvious was that I never again tried to smoke a cigarette in a car. Also, as a result of the connection of cigarettes to the almost accident in my mind I rarely smoked after that time and stopped completely after I graduated from high school. Some not so obvious good things that resulted are that I moved from being a risk taker to being a more cautious person. Also the crowd of individuals that I associated with began to change from those who were risk takers to those who were more cautious. Most likely my life has been extended by many years as a result of my almost accident which God allowed me to have those many years ago.
Before we become depressed or angry with God about things or circumstances, which occur in our lives there are some things as Christians, we should consider. We should consider the spiritual ramifications of those incidents and circumstances. Is it possible that in the long term there will be personal spiritual benefits as a result of the incident or circumstance? Is it possible that in the long term there will be spiritual benefits for others as a result of the incident or circumstance? If those benefits are not immediately discernable ask God to reveal how He may bring good from the incident or circumstance.
Once we have identified the possible spiritual benefits from the bad things or circumstances that occur in our lives we will then be much better prepared to walk with God through those things. Always remember that God loves you and wants the very best for your life and that no matter how bad something may be God can bring good from it. The key to His bringing about the good is our loving Him and seeking His will and purpose to be brought about in our lives.
(We should always strive to see the spiritual good that God brings from the bad things that happens in our lives.)