When I was young I played with my brothers and neighbors in the woods; climbed barbwire fences, climbed trees; ate pears straight from the trees; played wiffle ball; swam in our above ground pool; tobogganed and sledded in my neighbor's pasture; ran across the hay fields; made mud pies; thrilled over finding barn kittens in the hay loft; and never knew there was anything wrong with that. I learned there was something wrong with my country life when the town girls in school made fun of me for it. Obviously, now I look back and know better. There was nothing wrong with living on our farm. I wish, almost daily, that I still lived on a small farm with barn cats and even chickens, which I've been afraid of since I was attacked by a rooster when I was three.
I didn't know there was anything wrong with being the child of divorced parents until my closest friend's mother made it know that my mother was bad for being divorced. I didn't realize that I wasn't good enough to be her friend because of it. I love that she remained my friend anyway, even though I always felt the judgment in her mother's eyes. Once, again, I now know that there was nothing wrong with me because of my parents' martial status.
I worked at a retreat during the summers when I was in college. People of all ages came there usually for a week at a time. A friend I worked with told me some of the teenage girls thought I was conceited because I didn't look at them when I passed them; I didn't interact with them. I remember laughing because that was the farthest thing from the truth. I didn't interact with them because they seemed so cool, so popular, and I felt inferior to them. I rarely saw any value in me.
When I was young I used to say, "I'm cute! I'm sweet! And everybody loves me!" Deep inside I knew it wasn't true but I wanted to believe it. Not everybody loved me, some didn't even like me. Some didn't like me because my family had less than theirs. Some didn't like me because of my parents. One girl in college didn't like because I thought her boyfriend was cute, but I thought that before she even came to my college. I also never did anything besides think he was cute. I remember being shocked that she even disliked me so much over a thought. I was definitely not the only girl who thought so. Some people didn't like me, and I didn't even know why. I still don't.
We all have character flaws that we aren't aware of. I always wonder how it's possible that we don't know what it is, but they are so obvious to others. I know many of my character faults, but often wonder what is it I don't know about myself that turns people off to me. I ask God about it from time to time. That He reveals it to me and helps me work on it so I no longer have it.
Right now I am experiencing one of these time when something about me makes someone else not like me. A time when I don't understand why someone wants to be nice to my face, but then behind my back is trying to get rid of me. In the past, I would just cower and let the person walk all over me. This time I believe that God wants me to stand up against this. If I am at fault then that would be one thing, but I've never done anything but my job and let others do theirs. Some day I know I will look back and see the value in this, how God will use this time to help others. How do I know, because in many of the above mentioned situations in my life I have been able to help students who go through the same or similar situations. I marvel at how He uses even our deepest hurts to help us and others.
Showing posts with label God Uses Bad and Makes It Good.. Show all posts
Showing posts with label God Uses Bad and Makes It Good.. Show all posts
Friday, May 25, 2018
Wednesday, July 5, 2017
Scattered but Good Came From It!
"...At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles...Therefor those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word." Acts 8:1b and 4
Recently I have heard or read a lot against the idea that good comes from bad situations or that God will use tragedy for something good. The basic argument says that God is good and love and doesn't bring bad into our lives. Honestly, this debate grieves me. I know this is just my thoughts and I'm not stating that I have heard great words straight from God about this idea, but I still feel compelled to share my thoughts on the matter.
God is good. God is love. God does not bring bad things into our lives, because there is nothing bad about God. But the Scriptures clearly shows in the book of Job that God does allow bad things to happen to us. Go read Job 1 before we go any further, paying particular attention to the conversation between the Lord and satan. Did you see it? God asked satan if he had seen Job! Satan didn't come in and say, "hey God! Can I mess with Job's life?" Nope, God directed satan's attention to Job and then said that he could stretch his hand against him, but not take his life. Satan wasted no time, literally as one bearer of bad news was speaking another one would show up. Job's seemingly perfect life was completely destroyed in a matter of moments! And who pointed out this God-fearing man to satan? God did!
The story of Job and all that satan did to him is what always comes to my mind when I hear people try to theorize away the idea that God doesn't use tragedy in our lives to bring about good. In the beginning of Job 1 we learn about all that he was and all that possessed: he was blameless; he feared God and turned from evil; he had seven sons and three daughters; he had 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 female donkeys; he had many servants; and he was greatest of all the people in the east. He had it all! What did he have after satan had done his best to completely destroy the life of Job, even the very essence of who Job was? All his brother and sisters came and gave him money and jewelry; his flocks doubled 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys; and he one again had seven sons and three daughters, who were the most beautiful women of the land and given an inheritance along with their brothers (which didn't happen often during those time).
But God didn't just bless him with much on the other side of satan's destruction. He spoke directly with Job, and even though he was considered blameless before he had wrong thinking of God that needed to be corrected. Read through chapters 38-41, where God corrects Job. If God had spoken these things to Job before he had gone through the suffering he had endured their effect wouldn't have turned Job's heart as they did after his suffering. God used the tragedy for good!
Now, this post started with New Testament verses. I did that on purpose, because I know some will say Job is just a story (which I completely disagree with!) or that that was from the Old Testament and God is different now. The Scripture tells us that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, so argument doesn't hold water either. It isn't God who changed, but Jesus's death and resurrection change the nature of our relationship with God. Back to the point. Jesus told the disciples, now apostles, to go out as witnesses to the whole earth (Acts 1:9). Until chapter 8, there is no mention of them leaving Jerusalem to share what God had given them to share. It wasn't until the stoning of Stephen and the persecution of followers by Saul, that anyone left Jerusalem. The "therefor" in verse 4 is in reference to that persecution. Saul was throwing men and women into prison for their faith and the rest were scattering from the city. They went out into Judea and Samaria and shared with others. The first two places Jesus told the apostles to go in chapter 1 were Judea and Samaria, and now because it wasn't safe to remain in Jerusalem, that is exactly what they did. Why did Christianity spread across the world? Persecution. As the followers of God were persecuted,groups would leave and take the message with them. The Pilgrims did that same thing over a 1,000 years later. They were persecuted for their beliefs and they hopped on the Mayflower and came to the New World. They were the first to spread the message of God to what is now America.
I can't stare into the face of the Scriptures and not see that God DOES make good come from evil. God is not evil, but yes, He does use it for good. I can look at the struggles and trials of my own life and see the fruit of good that came from them. I work with children and more times than I can count, God has given me true empathy and words of wisdom to speak into their lives because of those things. Patience with a child who's parents divorced and he was still struggling to cope, even as one teacher told me, "that he should be over it by now." A year when extreme "girl drama" infested the girls in my class and I was able to pull from my own childhood struggles with friends to speak into the situation. The middle school boy, who was so much shorter than everyone else, that I could relate with because at his age I was so much taller than everyone else and was teased as he was. The children who struggles with reading and feel stupid, because so did I. God uses the bad and He makes good come from it, if we let Him!
Recently I have heard or read a lot against the idea that good comes from bad situations or that God will use tragedy for something good. The basic argument says that God is good and love and doesn't bring bad into our lives. Honestly, this debate grieves me. I know this is just my thoughts and I'm not stating that I have heard great words straight from God about this idea, but I still feel compelled to share my thoughts on the matter.
God is good. God is love. God does not bring bad things into our lives, because there is nothing bad about God. But the Scriptures clearly shows in the book of Job that God does allow bad things to happen to us. Go read Job 1 before we go any further, paying particular attention to the conversation between the Lord and satan. Did you see it? God asked satan if he had seen Job! Satan didn't come in and say, "hey God! Can I mess with Job's life?" Nope, God directed satan's attention to Job and then said that he could stretch his hand against him, but not take his life. Satan wasted no time, literally as one bearer of bad news was speaking another one would show up. Job's seemingly perfect life was completely destroyed in a matter of moments! And who pointed out this God-fearing man to satan? God did!
The story of Job and all that satan did to him is what always comes to my mind when I hear people try to theorize away the idea that God doesn't use tragedy in our lives to bring about good. In the beginning of Job 1 we learn about all that he was and all that possessed: he was blameless; he feared God and turned from evil; he had seven sons and three daughters; he had 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 female donkeys; he had many servants; and he was greatest of all the people in the east. He had it all! What did he have after satan had done his best to completely destroy the life of Job, even the very essence of who Job was? All his brother and sisters came and gave him money and jewelry; his flocks doubled 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys; and he one again had seven sons and three daughters, who were the most beautiful women of the land and given an inheritance along with their brothers (which didn't happen often during those time).
But God didn't just bless him with much on the other side of satan's destruction. He spoke directly with Job, and even though he was considered blameless before he had wrong thinking of God that needed to be corrected. Read through chapters 38-41, where God corrects Job. If God had spoken these things to Job before he had gone through the suffering he had endured their effect wouldn't have turned Job's heart as they did after his suffering. God used the tragedy for good!
Now, this post started with New Testament verses. I did that on purpose, because I know some will say Job is just a story (which I completely disagree with!) or that that was from the Old Testament and God is different now. The Scripture tells us that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, so argument doesn't hold water either. It isn't God who changed, but Jesus's death and resurrection change the nature of our relationship with God. Back to the point. Jesus told the disciples, now apostles, to go out as witnesses to the whole earth (Acts 1:9). Until chapter 8, there is no mention of them leaving Jerusalem to share what God had given them to share. It wasn't until the stoning of Stephen and the persecution of followers by Saul, that anyone left Jerusalem. The "therefor" in verse 4 is in reference to that persecution. Saul was throwing men and women into prison for their faith and the rest were scattering from the city. They went out into Judea and Samaria and shared with others. The first two places Jesus told the apostles to go in chapter 1 were Judea and Samaria, and now because it wasn't safe to remain in Jerusalem, that is exactly what they did. Why did Christianity spread across the world? Persecution. As the followers of God were persecuted,groups would leave and take the message with them. The Pilgrims did that same thing over a 1,000 years later. They were persecuted for their beliefs and they hopped on the Mayflower and came to the New World. They were the first to spread the message of God to what is now America.
I can't stare into the face of the Scriptures and not see that God DOES make good come from evil. God is not evil, but yes, He does use it for good. I can look at the struggles and trials of my own life and see the fruit of good that came from them. I work with children and more times than I can count, God has given me true empathy and words of wisdom to speak into their lives because of those things. Patience with a child who's parents divorced and he was still struggling to cope, even as one teacher told me, "that he should be over it by now." A year when extreme "girl drama" infested the girls in my class and I was able to pull from my own childhood struggles with friends to speak into the situation. The middle school boy, who was so much shorter than everyone else, that I could relate with because at his age I was so much taller than everyone else and was teased as he was. The children who struggles with reading and feel stupid, because so did I. God uses the bad and He makes good come from it, if we let Him!
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