It’s All Good

We know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

Romans 8:28

It’s fun to watch the news when there are stories of heroic deeds or happy events. But when there are tornadoes, wars, fires, or car accidents, it’s easier to change the channel. No one wants to hear the bad news. Good things happen. Bad things happen. But don’t let that discourage you. God can use both the good and bad things that happen in your life today.

This is absolutely true all the time. God can use the things we consider bad, as well as the good things, in order to accomplish his plans. Just look at Joseph from the Bible (see Genesis 37). His brothers were jealous of him, so they sold him into slavery. Poor Joseph probably thought that was the worst thing that could ever happen to him. He must have felt abandoned and wondered why God allowed it.

Yet later Joseph was able to see how God had used this dark point in his life to help him provide food for the Egyptian people during a severe famine. While Joseph was in Egypt, the pharaoh had a confusing dream about seven fat cows and seven skinny cows. Then the pharaoh had another dream about stalks of grain. God showed Joseph that both dreams meant a famine was coming. There would be no rain, so no crops would grow. That meant there would be no food to eat.

Because Joseph was in Egypt, he was able to warn the pharaoh of the coming famine. That meant the pharaoh was able to prepare for the famine ahead of time so there would be grain to feed the people during the years when nothing would grow. People, including Joseph’s brothers, also came from other countries for food.

When Joseph was reunited with his brothers many years after they had sold him, Joseph told them, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people” (Genesis 50:20).

God can use both the good and bad events of your life to carry out his plan. He did it for Joseph, and he’ll do it for you, too.

How have you seen God bring something good out of a bad situation? Tell someone about that time and how it affected your faith in God.