“Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Your word. You are good, and do good; teach me Your statutes. . . It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes” (Psalm 119:67-68, 71).
Dear Praying Friends:
Some of you may remember how Charlie Brown would lean his big round head against the wall in frustration and consternation, and groan, “Good grief!” We all know how that feels.
His words are an exclamation, not a theological declaration of God’s purpose in giving us “grief” of any kind. But the psalmist puts all that into proper perspective: the goodness of God.
We must be careful here. The Bible does not call evil good. Nor does it say that all suffering or sickness comes as discipline or punishment for sin (remember Job and the man born blind in John 9).
On the other hand, Scripture clearly states that “all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” That “good” is further defined as causing his chosen people “to be conformed to the image of His Son.” And that “image” includes both his moral likeness and his suffering. In other words, we are born (again) (partly) for suffering that leads to sanctification.
So, when we are afflicted by sadness or sickness or suffering, big or small, we can ask our loving Father to use these trials to cause us “keep [His] word,” and “learn [His] statutes,” that is, to understand, trust, and obey all his revelation in Scripture.
Thank you for praying last week. God enabled me to make progress on the book about Lit-Sen Chang, Hebrews 13, and the book review.
Yours in the God who is good and does good in and through his Son Jesus,
Wright