You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good (Genesis 50:20, NIV)Often our life journeys don't take us where we think we're headed. That was certainly true in Joseph's life when his own brothers threw him in a wilderness pit and later sold him.
In our own lives we can be shocked and think, "This is not the movie I bought my ticket for." Terminal illness. An unfaithful spouse. Chronic pain. An addicted child. What good can come from this? Where are God's blessings for my life?
If one has lived a moral life of serving God and others, he/she can mistakenly assume that such behavior will protect him/her from calamity.
Tragedy seems inconsistent with godliness. Seemingly, there's such disparity.
It's easy to take verses of scripture that seem to honor wise living and overlook the parts that follow.
"....in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation."(John 16:33, NIV) Christians are not exempt from tribulation----those hard parts of life. We just have to trust God and keep reading....and understand that when God says "Take heart....." or "Wait,"He is there in the midst with us.
"There's a difference between reading a map and traveling the road---as distinct as the disparity between reading a menu and and eating a meal." (Miles to Go, p.5)
In a life well-lived, one can still be served some inconsistencies of adversity and affliction----But God....is in those intersections of dispari-TEAs.
Life is a continuous journey. Continue to live it well. And......If along the way, life serves you a big cuppa dispari-TEA, just sweeten it with God's grace.
