Topic: All Things Work for Good [Joyce Meyer Devotional 1 September 2020]
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We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose.— Romans 8:28 (AMPC)
After John 3:16, Romans 8:28 is probably the most-quoted Bible verse among Christians. Paul’s words bring comfort and peace to many of us in our difficulties and hardships. They give us hope that no matter what hurts and disappointments come in our lives, everything will eventually work out for our good.
The two verses leading up to Romans 8:28 talk about prayer, and they reassure us that when we don’t know how to pray as we should, the Holy Spirit comes to our aid and prays through us. It’s through these Holy Spirit-filled prayers that all things work together for good, no matter what they are. Not all things that happen to us are good in and of themselves, but God is good, and He can harness them to produce something good in our lives if we trust Him.
Faith and prayer move the heart of God to act. If we continue believing, He promises to continue working. God makes this promise to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose, so when we love Him with all of our hearts and we genuinely want His will, He can go to work on our behalf.
The plan that God has for us is to be changed, from glory to glory, step by step, into His image. That may sound easy and spiritual, but in reality, it hurts. I often think of clay being pressed into a mold, and wonder how the clay would feel if it had feelings. Being changed into an entirely different shape would probably be painful, don’t you think? If we take a lump of clay and press it into a mold and there’s too much clay to fit, some pieces must be discarded in the process. In the same way, I’ve found many times that there was more of me than would fit into the mold of Jesus Christ, so many of my thoughts, words, and actions had to be left behind.
When we’re going through hard things, we have to learn how to respond the way Jesus would.
God’s purpose, in everything that happens, is to make us more like Jesus—He was the only perfect, totally obedient one. Although He was a Son, He learned [active, special] obedience through what He suffered (Hebrews 5:8 AMPC).
Like Jesus, we can learn through what we suffer, through God’s Word, and through life’s experiences. The fastest way to learn and move forward is to keep an attitude of surrender toward God, not to fight the process. The sooner we cooperate with Him, the sooner He can go to work.
I always say that where the mind goes, the person follows. When you keep your mind going in the right direction, your life will catch up with it. A person who has their faith firmly planted in God cannot be defeated. The Bible says that Joseph’s brothers hated him, but God was with him. God gave him favor and promoted him, so we can see that his faith and obedience eventually put him in a position to be lifted above his circumstances.
Some terrible things happened to Joseph. His brothers sold him to slave traders and told his father a wild animal had killed him. He was betrayed by those whom he had served in Egypt, but God was watching out for him all the time. God had a good plan for Joseph, and it came to pass. He ultimately said that although the things that happened to him were originally meant for harm, God intended it for good (see Genesis 50:20).
This same thing is true for all of us! Satan can’t defeat us if we keep believing that God is working for our good, and when we do, we open the door for God to intervene on our behalf.
Prayer Starter: Father, make me more like Jesus. I can’t stand to suffer, and I hate to fail. Please help me trust You to work even my greatest hurts and mistakes together for my good. In Jesus’ Name, amen