All Things Work Together for Good (or is it God)?

Yep, we often hear it and even quote it to all those that seem to be in crisis "all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28 (I'm quoting it from memory). Have you ever noticed that when you are in a crisis, the Bible can be either a comfort or a club with some people. I can attest that I have been both comforted and victimized at this time in my own struggle. The other day, I had someone very close to me say, "so where is you're faith in all this?" I found myself offended, since I still believe that God has all of this in his care and hands and that hasn't changed. The statement came, because I told this person that I was depresseed and desparate!" The formula that was being assessed here was depression + desparation = lack of faith or unbelief. So I had to ask myself, "is faith something deeper than feeling okay?" I've been under the assumption that it is living in a cosmic sense of navigation when all things seem to take another course than what you desire. It is allowing yourself to be honest to God and say, "I don't like this, and I don't feel good about it, but I do know that somehow it serves eternity." It goes beyond denial and into those deep intermost places of our being that realizes there is another that I belong to, and I really don't own my life anymore. There may be screaming, crying, pain, desparation and maybe behavior that seems inappropriate for a "good Christian" to exude, but that's the point, faith is other than this, and dying is a hard thing for our Western mind to do. Faith also begs us to wait and watch the marvelous unfold into something that we cannot make happen ourselves! So when it all crashes in, we are not called to just make believe that it is all okay, but maybe we are being made period through the pain, stuggle, and screaming out! Maybe this is what the Jonah meant by writing "In my distress I called to the LORD...From the depths of the grave I called for help..." Jonah 2:2.

Drew and Dad

Drew has been really glad to have dad back. He seemed to be lost in a house full of females. Now he has dad, and we have had a great time playing baseball and riding taking motorcycle rides together (just in the backyard of course).

The BIG School

My travels in looking for God's next step for me has brought me to the University of Michigan's campus. Due to having a close friend who is in administration, I have been able to connect with some very powerful and influential people at the university. I have been very impressed with their quality and compassion as I have been connecting at their location. One hopeful sight that I had when I was talking to the Senior Associate Vice President for Student Affairs was a picture of a rainbow that he had on his wall. The amazing thing was that I had the same exact picture on my wall in my home office. The really amazing thing was that this picture was taken at the same time by two different people of the same rainbow. Is that God or what. A week before, I was driving home and saw a very beautiful rainbow spanning over an open corn field. God has used rainbows as a particular promise to me that he is working on my behalf.