Romans 8:28 NKJV
28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
When that verse says ‘all things,” I think many people, even some Christians and family members that I’ve discussed this verse with, think it doesn’t really mean “All Things.” But from my experience in the way I finally made a full surrender and all out effort to live my life to seek God with All My Heart, I Believe it’s, ALL Things.
After I became “Born Again with God’s Spirit” He allowed me to experience some extra ordinary times in His presence, answering specific prayers in specific and radical ways and totally wiped out my taste in music to Christian music and preaching. All things I’d NEVER experienced, desired or had done. After some years I let the old desires, tastes in music and other things creep back into my life. After years of living a carnal Christian life, I began to understand my thorn in the flesh sin that I had thought was OK from God’s point of view. That revelation gave me a disgust for that sin and a desire to be free from it. Something that didn’t come overnight or easily. The more I struggled to be free the more disgusted I was with the sin and myself. I begged and pleaded with God for months to be free until He finally answered my prayer with a new heart that could really love Him. I cherish and protect this heart and firmly believe it’s the last one He’ll give me.
The revelation of God’s view of my thorn in the flesh sin, my disgust of it and the begging and pleading with God for months and His making me wait to answer were ALL Good for me. It All left a mark on me. I want to believe a “GOOD” mark that will help me to Never think of backsliding or straying from God ever again.
So in my mind, God took what was a terrible event in my life and “Worked It For Good.” My conscience had been “seared” to God’s view of my sin for a long time. He could have left me with a reprobate mind as Romans chapter 1 describes.
So that was an example were my willful actions ended up bringing me to the place I should have been by a much more unsinful route, for my Good. But what about if you don’t have an obvious role in bringing something bad that is going on in your life like a stroke, heart disease or cancer. Can that too be a case where God will work ALL Things together for Good?
Or how about the horrible suffering and death that Jesus endured so that He could shed His Sinless, Perfect and Spotless Blood to once and for all to atone for our sins. This wasn’t a “fluke” because many Bible prophecies were fulfilled exactly as they were written centuries earlier.
Just a couple weeks ago I found out that Bishop Drew’s wife, Pastor Wanda was experiencing some serious heart problems. It seems very possible that the “fix” for her heart problem would be to do something to a valve in her heart. The doctors are looking at open heart surgery or maybe being able to get to it by going in through a blood vessel her groin.
Since then I have been interceding for her, reminding God of some scriptures that speak of His Faithfulness to care for those who sincerely seek Him.
Hebrews 11:6 NKJV But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
So everyday I pray asking God to do a wonderful thing by completely healing Pastor Wanda’s heart where NO surgery is needed. The doctor would have to admit God has done a verifiable miracle. In my reasoning with God I remind Him how much Bishop Drew and Pastor Wanda has sought Him to bring fresh manna from His throne of Grace to feed His sheep under their care all these years.
I remember the testimony of Pastor B.H. Clendennen that had a couple big heart attacks in less than 24 hours. He had only been preaching a short time but he didn’t want to put any faith in doctors so after much pleading with his wife to drive him to a motel and leave him there, she did. He was too weak to drive himself. He told the porter to not disturb him for any reason. He began reading at Genesis on his knees and spent most of the time that way because he says it was the only way he could take in some breath with his heart pain. Pastor Bert said he read through the entire bible until he got to Psalm 9 verse 10. He said that verse jumped off the page and he claimed that verse because it totally applied to him. He says he felt a hand reach inside his chest and from that day on had a new heart. That verse says,
10 And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.
Much later in Pastor Bert’s life he had to take a physical and heart stress test. After the tests were done the doctor told him, “that’s the best heart I’ve ever seen in a man your age.” He was about 70 then. Pastor Bert told the doctor, “it ought to be, it’s only about 35 years old.”
So I have another promise from God’s word to remind Him how much Pastor Wanda must have sought Him, many times not for herself or her family but for God’s children, His family. So I have another reason why God should give Pastor Wanda the miracle of a completely healed heart. But knowing that I’m NOT God and that I don’t see the big picture like He does, I have to sometimes add, please let it all be done according to Your Perfect Will.
Kind of like in the movie of a true story, “Miracles From Heaven” where young Anna Beam falls down into an old rotted out hollowed out tree. Anna has been through the mill of doctors and hospital stays with an incurable disease effecting her stomach. While unconscious in the bottom of the tree, Anna’s spirit leaves her body and goes to heaven but God sends her back. She makes a miraculous recovery from the fall, and her incurable disease disappears. When Anna was told by God that He was sending her back from heaven, Anna pleads with God not to go back because of her painful disease. God’s answer to Anna is that she will be OK from now on and she is.
After the news media gets hold of Anna Beam’s story, her mother Christy, played by Jennifer Garner announces that she will “testify” at church of Anna’s story and how God REALLY Healed her. After she witnesses to the congregation, some of them start to accuse her and Anna of making the whole thing up. Strangely a man from across the country stands up from his pew to come to Anna and Christy’s defense. He says, “I believe her because Anna changed my daughter’s life. His daughter had died of her disease but young Anna had prayed for her and befriended her telling her about God and His LOVE. The dad says his daughter died without fear of death because of faith in God Anna gave her. Anna’s faith in God had touched the other hospital workers too.
God worked a way to “Work For GOOD” something out of a terrible situation in Anna, Christy’s and the young girl that died’s life. God was shared and experienced in this life to people in a way that brought them and the girl who died to Eternal Life with God, Forever.
So that brings me to Wednesday nights church service. Bishop Drew gave us an update that Pastor Wanda was looking at a few weeks of tests before the doctors would decide what would be the best way to address the valve problem in her heart. By open heart surgery or through her groin. Bishop Drew told us about the test that Pastor Wanda had done Wednesday.
Bishop Drew said the young male lab technician that performed the test seemed to notice the perfume that Pastor Wanda was wearing and asked her what was it. Pastor Wanda told him it was Estee Lauder. He asked, “which one” and Pastor Wanda said, “Pleasures.” The young man said, ” that’s the kind of perfume my grandmother use to wear, her name was Wanda too.”
So you see, God Does Have A Way to work ALL THINGS together for His Good and,
“for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28
As a verse from a recent post says from the Good News Translation,
8 “My thoughts,” says the Lord, “are not like yours,
and my ways are different from yours.
9 As high as the heavens are above the earth,
so high are my ways and thoughts above yours. Isaiah 55:8-9
I have seen the business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.
Ecclesiastes 3:10-11 ESV
God has a way of getting us and others to think about where eternity will end up being spent. He doesn’t tell us ahead of time how He will get that thought in our mind & heart.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:6
God will “Direct Your Path” and the paths of those He wants you to minister to in divinely orchestrated appointments. We serve an amazing God who knew the end even before the beginning. My backsliding, Pastor Bert’s heart attack, Bishop Drew’s open heart surgery, what will be Pastor Wanda’s journey or the paths you’ll take in life are NO Surprise to Him, only to us.
In The Word 