Genesis 42:36b – Everything is against me. It is possible that every child of God sometimes utter words of utter frustration and distress at some deeply difficult times in their lives. These words come out of deep despair for a child of God who finds no consolation in any thing that is going on around him or her. The situation is one of multiple events which break their hearts, but they are unable to even move a small finger. There doesn’t seem to be a ray of hope in any thing and the believer gets disillusioned. At that time, utterances which are unbecoming of a believer sometimes come out. Such has been the tangled circumstances of Jacob who thought he was going to loose another son after Joseph was lost. It seems that for a moment he forgot that he has been recently made Israel, (prince with God). Only a few years ago, he demonstrated that he was a man of faith by changing the sad name of his youngest son from Benoni (son of my sorrow, as he was called by his dying wife Rachel) to Benjamin (son of my right hand). He was the kind of man who wrestled with the angel of the Lord some time back. He was the visionary of Bethel and received the promises of God. Considering all of these, Jacob seemed not to have thought about what God would have been doing for him as part of His promises to him. Surely, he has received promises from the Almighty and that should mean that it is being worked out by the Promise Giver. His Promise Giver is also the Promise Keeper in whom Jacob has trusted. Jacob should have comforted himself in the Lord, thinking that all that was happening to him should be with the express knowledge of God and that the promises of God to him personally should have meant that God was in full and absolute control over all his affairs. So Jacob should have believed that all that was happening to him will work together for his good and not for his destruction. In other words, all that was happening to him was for his good and that it was all controlled by the hand of God.
Dear friend, are you deeply disillusioned today about your situation? Do you feel a deep sense of hopelessness? Do you think, like Jacob, that all things are against you? What you probably may not realize is that your God is at work for you to fulfill the promises which are given to you in His Word. Remember, He is your God and is on your side. He has a definite plan for you and is fulfilling it day by day. Perhaps now you may not be able to see or understand every thing that the Lord is doing in your life. But all these things that are happening will work together for your good. Perhaps each of the present events may not be so good in itself, but they will all lead to your ultimate good. If there is failure in a particular area in your life, perhaps you are prevented from going forward in that area by the Lord so as to prevent greater loss or failures and heartaches in the future. If things are not going as per your schedule, it might be that you are either too slow or too fast according to the schedule the Lord has for you. When some of your aspirations are not fulfilled, you will have to believe that the Lord knows the reasons. It might be because its fulfillment might not be spiritually expedient for you. But you can be rest assured that the Lord will not cause you to suffer except it is for your spiritual welfare. So next time you are deeply disillusioned, be on the guard to fill your heart with thoughts which are noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8). Be careful not to pray a prayer of frustration like Prophet Elijah. Yes, it is true that all that is happening to you are with the express knowledge and permission of God to cause it for your good and for your welfare, and for God to meet His perfect plan and schedule for you. Let us praise such a wonderful Lord who works things out for His glory in our lives.
Romans 8:28 – 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. Thought for TodayGod in His goodness forgives our thoughtless utterances of disillusionment and continues to work out His plans in our lives for His glory.
