Romans 8:28

Romans 8:28 states: And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

Who causes this? God.
All things: what things? My life, my work, my reputation, my trust, my faith, my mistakes?
Work together? This means there is more than one issue at stake, right?
For good? Yay! Something positive is about to come out of this mess!
Those who love God. Aha! There's the catch: they have to love God, not self.
To those who are called...Not to those who seek to do things on their own.
According to His purpose. His. Not mine. Not yours.

So, what in the world are my jumbled thoughts saying this morning? Let's wander through them and see!

I have this "friend" who is going through a trial unlike one faced before. Reputation, family, faith are all being questioned, are all being looked at through a microscope viewed my many (extras, as a matter of fact, thanks to social media). Is it possible that this friend has been right yet...Yet the "accusers" are right too? I think so. I really think so. For you see, sometimes we need to be called out for our actions, we need to be "punished" or reprimanded or even alienated. We need to (wo)man up and own our faults. We need to accept the consequences of our behaviours, even if this means we lose something we valued for so long.

Hey, guess what? What if that is the blessing in disguise? What if that thing we thought was so dear, was so valuable, was so worth all the time we spent on it turned out to be just a little god that needed to be let go of in the first place? What if that thing we thought made us something more than what we actually are was just an albatross that needed to be removed from our neck FOR OUR GOOD (sorry for the caps but I can't use italics here)? What if our focus on this little god took the vision off of our big God and the best-case scenario was to leave it all behind so that everyone could benefit? Hmn.

My friend, I don't know if you realize what a gift God is giving to you by removing you from this situation. Yes, it has caused you pain. Your reputation has taken a hit. Your faith has been shaken but hey: didn't that truthfully bring you to talk to God, to rely on Him, to seek Him out more than perhaps you had been doing? What if those stories told on you actually had some facts in them that needed to be addressed in order for you to do some self-evaluating to see if there was any validity in them and made you aware that oh yeah, I am guilty of that and I need to change this aspect of my walk with God?

Please don't think I am judging you. I may even just be talking to myself. This trial may take you in a place you haven't visited before but guess what?! That place might be better than the one you've been dwelling in. A fresh start may just be what the Doctor ordered!

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. Rewritten in my own words it goes like this: God is the Author, making my life and all the chaos and pleasures in it combine into something wonderful because of my love for Him and to fulfill the purpose He has for me. I mentioned I used to be an English teacher so you can imagine how much I love a good book. God is writing mine and if I will just step back and let Him do so without my proofreading and suggestive edits, it may just be a Masterpiece!