DEVOTION – DAY 181

Romans 8:28 “The Good And The Bad Things”

Rom.8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, and who have been called according to His purpose.

Many Christians have no problem in believing that God loves them when everything is working out well in their lives. But it is different when life is filled with disasters. When that happens, how many of us are able to still think that God loves us? 

As an example, if we were to taste some flour, it would not be tasty at all. If we taste some butter on its own, we would feel bloated. If we were to taste raw eggs, it would also not be easy for us to swallow it. If we taste some sugar on its own, it would be too sweet. But if we mix all the flour, eggs, sugar and butter in their right proportions and bake them together, we will end up with a delicious cake. In the same way, the challenges, difficulties, problems and crisis we face in our lives separately may seem to us bad and should be avoided. But God allows the challenges, difficulties, problems and crisis to come into our lives and Rom.8:28 teaches us that all the bad things and the good things that happen to us work for the good. In what way does it work for the good? Rom.8:29 tells us that all these things, the good and the bad things that happen to us cause us to ‘conform to the image of His Son”. The good and the bad things in our lives are all things that God uses to mold and shape us to be more like His Son, Jesus Christ. This is what we have been called according to God’s purpose for all of us. 

We have a friend who recently suspected he had Covid-19. He had a fever that did not seem to go away. He self-quarantined himself at home, and took a Covid-19 test. He was found to be positive. His condition worsened and he had to be hospitalized. He feared that his wife and three young children would also be infected by him. He cried out to God for mercy and he asked many Christian friends to pray for him. He prayed for healing and to be able to be discharged quickly from hospital. But his condition did not improve. After one week, although his condition had stabilized, he was still weak and lethargic. Another week passed and he was on stronger medication but he was still not well enough to be discharged. It was only after three weeks that his condition improved enough for him to be discharged. Looking back, he recognized that his hospital stay was God’s way to draw him closer to Him. It was God’s way to also protect his family from being infected for he was in isolation in hospital. God also provided him a bed in a good hospital even though many hospitals were full and were not accepting new cases. In all things, God worked for the good of those who love Him. Our friend’s faith in the Lord also deepened as a result.

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, we thank you for working in all things, whether good or bad, for our good, and to mold us to be more like Christ. Help us to be thankful and learn from every experience. In the name of the Lord Jesus we pray. Amen.

Questions

• How have both good and bad things that have happened to you shaped you to be more Christ like? Share.
• How have your faith in the Lord strengthened as a result of hard times?
• If hard times are used by God to mold us, why do people want to have immediate relief from hard times? 
• What should be their attitude towards hard times? Discuss.