I think back to things that have happened in my life before now; things that have led me to where I am today and realize that by being in this moment, stepping back from the canvas, all things (even the very bad things) HAVE worked together for good. We all go through things in our lives that make us ask the question, "Why me?" or "Why did that have to happen?" or "Man, I can't seem to catch a break." It often seems like when it rains, it pours. At least I've known that to be true with many cases in my life. They say there's always a calm before the storm or life is a series of "mountain top" experiences and "deep valleys". It's funny that when we are going through those "deep valleys" that we aren't able to understand why God is allowing this to happen and what He is trying to teach us. I've learned that if you make a mistake, the best thing you can do is make sure you learn something from it, ask forgiveness and move on. As long as you learn a valuable lesson from mistakes in your life, I think it ends up being worth it. There are things that have happened in my past, that when I look back now, I can totally see why God had me in that place. Sometimes we may never know why we had to endure a painful trial in our life, but the most important thing to remember is that as long as we are living for God, He will use everything for the good of those who love Him.
Ellen Miller writes, "Have you recently faced a crisis that you feel you may not emerge from? Can you step back from your tragedy? Can you shine a different light on your situation? Are you far enough away from the event now that you can see--from standing back here--that while one dream didn't come true, other, even more beautiful realities (that you had never allowed yourself to conceive of) have been gifted you?"
She makes such a great point here. God knows what we need more than we know what we need. So of course, when He allows something to happen (most of the time to teach us something important), we only see the bad...we usually don't see the good until much later. I am VERY guilty of not even wanting to see the big picture. All I can think about is how it feels NOW, what is going on NOW and why things aren't working out NOW. But usually something comes along (like this devotional) that reminds me not to only think about what's going on NOW, but to remember to look at it from a distance. God sees the big picture while we merely only see what's going on here and now.
She also writes, "If you're in the middle of a crisis, I know you can't see clearly either. It's hard when you're smack-dab in the middle of it. But tomorrow you won't be. You'll be looking at your masterpiece from a new perspective and you'll be absolutely amazed at your new life story and the difference a bit of distance can make....so HANG ON!"
"Those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint."
--Isaiah 40:31
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