“And we know that in all things God works
for the good of those who love him,
who have been called according to his purpose..”
Romans 8:28
Oh, wilderness of poverty, rejection, or betrayal,
of illnesses and loneliness, of suffering and grief...
Oh, how much these barren lands can our hopes derail,
and how much we wish that such experience was brief!
We wish to have good health and wealth, good friends and love, success,
we long to be accepted, respected, and admired,
and how hard, when things go wrong, to face life’s mess,
to bear all these sufferings, which we have not desired.
Oh, why the Lord allows us to go through much pain?
Why do we have to be hard-pressed in various degrees?
This question burns in our minds again and again,
but only a few of us go down on our knees.
To praise the Lord for all that comes, alas, we must confess,
not all are able, and sometimes we grumble, sulk, or cry,
but when the loving God permits hard times and distress,
we humbly should accept His will and lift His name high.
A life in the hands of God is vulnerably weak.
Not at this whim He gives and takes but has His own plan
to make obedient a soul, on Him dependent, meek,
to test in flames of His fire, a stubborn heart of man.
When we repent, accepting Him, rejecting former pride,
all troubles humble us and teach on God alone to wait
for, if predestined to be His, we’d know deep inside
that God desires not to harm, - His purposes are great!
4-7.03.2023