Often times, we think of things that are not pleasant as bad, and pleasant circumstances as good. Pastor Wes told a story about a father and son having this discussion over the course of the young man’s life. The story goes something like this:
The young man had a horse of great breeding and was desirable by many. One day the horse got out of the enclosure that it was kept in, and ran off. The young man said this is a bad day for me as I have lost a very valuable prize. His father said are you sure this is a bad thing? A few weeks passed and the horse returned to the young mans pasture, without the assistance of anyone, with a mare along side. The young man said this is truly a great day! My stud horse has returned and brought with him a mare. Again, the father said are you sure this is such a good thing? Now let your mind wander in this story and you write the final page. Does the young man reap good from the event or does his life become muddied by the return of his stud horse?
The Word says Satan means for bad to happen to us, but God intends for it to be used for our good. We all too often give credit for the things that at first look appear to be bad things to Satan, and to God all the things that on the front end seem to be good things. Let me explain it in another way–if you were to win the lottery and become the richest person in Arkansas, but over time you waste all your great riches and wind up more in debt than you were prior to becoming so instantaneously rich (this often times is exactly what happens to lottery winners.) Was this a gift from God or did Satan find a hole in your armor? You are worse off for the event.
Had I not suffered for so many years with an addiction I could not shake, I would not have been able to give grace to those around me that suffer from similar addictions. My human nature, given to me by my parents, is to look down upon those who appear less fortunate than I do on the outside. My assertion is Satan intended for me to die in the addiction, but God intended to use that experience in life to teach me an object lesson I would have been unable to learn any other way. Now I am not saying that God led me into the addiction, however, He did know me before I was formed in my mother’s womb. He knew I would have a tendency to see others through law and not grace. So, I believe God allowed Satan to ensnare me in an addiction that could have ruined my life so that His will in me might be done.
The Word says to give thanks in all things in this life–both the things we see as good and those we see as bad. “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance,” James 1:2. Stop giving Satan so much credit in your life and start praising God from whom all things flow. God’s ways are higher than our ways and after all He wrote the book of your life. God knows the ending from the beginning and we struggle with the day to day.
“Praise God from whom all blessings flow.” He blesses you in the good and the bad times if you will just hang on to your faith and allow God to work His will in you.