“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

I was blessed to have a mother that I loved as my mother and cherished as a friend and confidante.  That’s not always true for every mother-daughter relationship, so if you have that kind of relationship, count yourself as fortunate.  My mother and I were like Peat and Repeat only she was shorter, nicer and funnier.  Just like her, I can’t remember the punch lines to jokes!  And laughing together was one of our favorite things.

When my mother was diagnosed with cancer in 2005, she and my father shared devotions every day.  One of their favorite verses was Romans 8:28 and it became something of a talisman for our family to hold on to in that difficult time.  Now, this verse from Romans can be seen as simply a really nice and uplifting passage from the New Testament.  However, lest you think that it was all peaches and cream and that my mother’s illness was a triumphant beautiful trip like a Lifetime Movie of the Week, you would be wrong!  It was painful.  It was time-consuming emotionally and physically. We cursed cancer; it stole from us and cheated us all of a wonderful woman.  But it also drew our family together and brought us closer.  It was a holy time that was a gift from God.  That’s what Romans 8:28 means to me…God can take the worst circumstances and flip them on their head and turn them around so their ultimate meaning is something else…God gives meaning to what otherwise would be meaningless.

God doesn’t just take tragic or really heart-rending passages of life and turn them around; He takes the ordinary, everyday circumstances of our daily existence that can be depressing or difficult and turns them upside down too.  When someone is hurtful at school or work, we can use it as an opportunity to teach ourselves how NOT to be and to turn towards God.  Repeat after me:  Grace and Forgiveness, Grace and Forgiveness, Grace and Forgiveness!  Sometimes the day-to-day challenges are the hardest.  Remember that God’s way is not the way of the world; He can take even the worst of circumstances of sorrow to draw us closer to Him and turn brokenness into beauty.  As the writer Corrie ten Boom said “In darkness, God’s truth shines most clear.”

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, thank you for making Yourself known in all your goodness in all things. Help us to pause when we are under stress and struggling and remind us that You are always with us.  Help us to in turn offer others your Grace and
Forgiveness as you have offered it to us.  Amen.