“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28.

In life we have both sunshine and rainfall experiences, they are both essential for growth; the process of photosynthesis is a great example, Photosynthesis is largely responsible for producing and maintaining the oxygen content of the Earth’s atmosphere, and supplies most of the energy necessary for life on planet Earth…quite necessary right?; so, it is in our spiritual lives-we needed the sunshine or mountain top experiences, as well as the rainfall or valley experiences of life to grow us- they both provide the spiritual energy (the Holy Spirit) that only comes from God- life experiences sometime bring tears, but they also bring blessings such as joy, peace, love, and praise to our Almighty and faithful God! ^“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23.

In and through it all when should we trust God my friends-in both the good and the bad! God is sovereign and has divine providence over our lives. He has lovingly blessed us with innumerous spiritual blessings; Ephesians 1:11 state “In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:” God according to His divine counsel has given us eternal life and blessings beyond our greatest imagination.

So, let us place our hope and trust in the One who has already provided such marvelous things for us all! He predestined… or planned it from the beginning of time that we would receive an inheritance; the apostle Paul used the word obtained and inheritance, in the keeping with the allocation of land or lot that God gave to each of the twelve tribes of Israel. Our lot or inheritance is in heaven, and this precious gift of salvation has been given to us by the wise and omniscient counsel of God.

My friends, this is good news! It reminds us that God has only the best for those that love Him, and our lives are orchestrated by His divine will. Nothing happens during our lives, favorable or unfavorable that He does not have direct control over. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

Let us walk in peace and renewed hope each day, trusting in God’s amazing grace to keep us through it all. My dear brother Thomas Staples utilizes the phrase “faith reports;” Faith reports are the past experiences in life that God has lovingly brought us through over all these years. He admonishes us when times are rough and when we cannot seem to see our way through…to stop and pull out our faith reports, to think about how God has kept, sustained us, and moved in every circumstance in our lives – and every single one has been for our good and His glory!

Today, whether we are in the sunshine, or rain of life, we are not alone… God is with us, He is in control, and we can rest assured that He is working it out for our good.

God blessings, peace, and joy to all!