All Things Given For Good

Romans 8:28
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.(NIV)

         When I began my journey at college I heard the words of this Romans passage spoken again and again. I would go to hear Bill Gaither, Andrae Crouch and went to any number of revivals where these words took center stage. They crawled within a person like a seed in a fertile soil waiting to grow and be harvested. God offered words though preaching and song so others might know what All things taking place for the good.
         Paul's story offered an example of how these words were at work. Paul had a wonderful education. He studied at the best schools of his own day and was at the top of his class. He was one of those pegged "most likely to succeed". He took this honor to heart. After all hadn't he earned the acolade of Pharisee of the Pharisees. We talk of Pharisees in very negative terms in our Christian culture. It was an indication that you made the grade in Jewish culture. The scribes wrote the law down and the Pharisees demonstrated by their own devotion that the law was worth investing one's life in. They could be equated with the modern day preacher. It is not enough to speak the Word. It was much more important to live it out.
         Paul was a leader of the Jewish movement when "The Way"(Christianity) was first coming into prominence. Paul saw it as his duty to persecute persons associated with this heresy. Hadn't it's leader been crucified on a cross? Paul was there when Stephen was being stoned to death having kept track of the coats of those who cast death blows. The words of Jesus spoken to the men who were going to cast stones at an adulterous woman meant nothing. "HE WHO IS WITHOUT SIN CAST THE FIRST STONE"! Paul and his good squad had found solace in knowing they were right and anyone who was a "Christian" was wrong.
         Then Paul met Jesus on the Damascus Road. He heard Jesus words: "Why do you persecute me"? Paul could never be the same. He lets go of all his scholastic accolades. For the rest of his life he would live like a fugitive. He became a minister to the Gentilles, a group of people that the Jews hated as much as Paul once hated the Christians. His objective was to offer them new life in the person of a resurrected Lord. Paul made little money compared to what he could have made. He mended tents to help pay the bills. To truly gain an appreciation for Romans 8:28 one needed to keep in mind all that Paul lost, so that he might know Jesus Christ. This was the essence of thanksgiving. I let go of what I thought made me special to embrace the only one who is. Life could only get better.

         I was an incoming Junior in College when my life was rocked. That summer I was preparing myself to leave the comforts of college to become an evangelist. I thought I finally knew what it meant to be a Christian. I was prepared to show others that their was a God who loved them despite themselves. I loved God as much as anyone. Why wouldn't God give me what I wanted?
         I learned what it meant to be totally humiliated. I was diagnosed with a mental illness. People at college and my church were giving up on me as I languished at various hospitals, the last one being a state hospital. The year and a half I spent trying to get my life back seemed like an eternity. At varying times I was told by persons in authority that I would never leave the confines of the hospital. I am glad that God has other plans!!!
         God found a way for me to get out. I was all ears for the first time in my life. God was telling my to go back to the same college where I had experienced my trouble against the wishes of all those who loved me most. God's Word let me know that there could be no root of bitterness. Before my emotional collapse I had a respectable grade point average of 3.0. By the time I would finish my education I was Cum Laude. I had performed beyond by expectation and the expectations of others.

         Since that time I have been a minister for fifteen years and father to three beautiful kids. I write this story with tears in my eyes wondering why I am no longer doing professional ministry. Instead I work in security, volunteering with hospice and doing work with the elderly on the side. I only know that the same God that delivered me is using me in ways that can only be described as "good". Maybe Paul's gift of writing makes more sense to me more now than ever. I want all to know what God has shown me. To God be the Glory!!!

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