When we look at the beauty of creation, the bounty on our table, and the blessings bestowed upon us it is easy to say, “He hath done all things well”. There can be no denying when it comes to these evident manifestations of God’s goodness. However, when it comes to burdens we tend to lose sight of His goodness. If He isn’t walking in lock-step with us we seem to think He is less than fair.
The truth is, God is good all the time–regardless of what He does or doesn’t do. Yet we often misunderstand Him. We lack the wisdom to see the wisdom of His ways. We lose sight of reality. As sure as there is light there is darkness. As sure as there is pleasure there is pain. as sure as there is good there is bad. But, regardless of circumstances or conditions, this testimony is always true–“He hath done all things well“. Whatever God causes or allows it is for some good reason.
Considering this should remind us of the need to live by faith rather than sight. Unless our feelings are based on God’s Word we will always come to the wrong conclusions and become frustrated. Faith is our assurance of God’s promises and our acceptance of His precepts and principles. Trying to live any other way is a struggle and a burden.
None of us enjoy pain and suffering. We enjoy things that are pleasurable. When we are deprived of our desires we feel cheated and want an explanation. Sometimes we feel we’ve been singled out for persecution and we wallow in self-pity. To avoid that we need to keep a few things in mind. First of all we need to remember that trials are common to all. Everyone has their share of suffering. It’s not wise to compare ourselves to one another. Just because someone doesn’t complain it doesn’t mean they aren’t hurting. And, just because somebody complains more doesn’t mean they hurt more. We don’t know how the other person feels. Second, we need to understand that regardless of how good we are we are all unworthy. None of us deserve to be exempt from trials. The only perfect person who ever lived was Christ and He suffered much more than anything we’ve ever experienced. How then can we ever say,”This isn’t fair”? Third, we need to realize that because we feel our trial is a hindrance rather than a help it isn’t necessarily so. God knows best. He never allows His children to suffer without a reason. He has a purpose and a plan for our pain, and it is perfect. He doesn’t expect us to understand His ways, but He does demand that we accept His wisdom, trusting Him to do what is right and best.
Every child has at some time thought their father to be mistaken about something only to discover later that he was right. Even so, there is coming a day when all God’s children will be compelled to humbly bow and confess that “He hath done all things well”. Trust Him now!
