eVotional: Romans 8:28
God is Faithful Amidst our Shortcomings
“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28
I’ve really come to see how good the Lord is despite my own choices, decisions, or understanding. God is faithful even when we are not. It gives me great hop to see that God promised Abraham a child, and when he and Sarah took matters into their own hands making a mess of things, God still delivered his promise. It didn’t remove the mess the couple created by birthing Ishmael, but God still worked for their good nonetheless.
We mess things up and create problems for ourselves; that’s for certain. But God is merciful and gracious altogether. He can use what we consider to be our embarrassing and plain ‘ole dumb moments of failure to promote his glory. He uses imperfect vessels to pass on the knowledge of him and display his goodness. All it takes is perseverance to never give up. Our perfection is not contingent on our adherence to rules and laws, it is dependent on our endurance in our relationship with God through Christ.
By receiving the Holy Spirit we receive illumination in the Holy Scriptures by which we will be empowered for victorious living. Denying this flesh of its desires in favor of God’s desires for us requires a life of discipline. Fasting, prayer, and eating of his proclaimed word are essential to our strength. A new life awaits us in Christ Jesus that is worth the discipline of being crucified with Christ.
You are called according to a great and renewed purpose. Your set of traits, talents, and abilities are God-given and enhanced when you came to Christ. You may be called into other places as you grow, but there are elements in your life right now which were divinely chosen for you to embrace. Don’t belittle the small things. Where we are has so much more in store for us than we realized.
You have a rich heritage in Christ. You belong to an eternal family in which righteousness and truth dwell! If you are willing to endure, he is already at work in bringing all things together to work for your good.