I have often heard it said that Romans 8:28 is the wrong verse to bring to the attention of those who are grieving, that while it is true in our especially difficult moments, it does not necessarily become helpful until some time has passed. And while I can only speak for myself, it has been my experience that in my lowest moments I have feasted on Romans 8:28, I have run to it like a starving man runs to a meal and I have drunk from it like a parched man drinks from an oasis. I have needed Romans 8:28 and it has both comforted my soul and directed my grief.
The verse says, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” It is for good reason that this is one of the most familiar verses in the entire Bible and for good reason that so many have memorized it. And I wonder if you have ever paused to consider a world without Romans 8:28?
Without Romans 8:28 we would not have confidence that our experiences in this world “work … for good.” We might believe that some of what we experience works for harm, that Satan and God are cosmically slugging it out with first one and then the other gaining the upper hand. We might be tempted to believe that some of what we experience works for nothing, that there is an arbitrary element to life in which things happen that have no purpose, no meaning, and no redemption. We might gaze at our sorrows and sufferings and think, “There is no goodness in this and no way goodness could ever come from this.”
Without Romans 8:28 we would not have confidence that “all” things work for good. We might believe that some of the things we experience ultimately work for good while others ultimately work for our harm. Or we might believe that some things work for good while other things are empty and meaningless, black holes in God’s providence.
Without Romans 8:28 we might not see the hand of God working in our suffering, for where things “work together for good,” there must be someone who is working them. Work requires a worker! We might assume, as do so many today, that an impersonal force like the universe is ultimately behind our circumstances. We might even assume that there is no deity and no intelligent being who acts out his providence within this universe, but just cold impersonal fate.
Without Romans 8:28 we might neglect to meditate on the fact that our purpose in this world is to serve God’s purpose—that we have been “called according to his purpose.” We might fail to ponder the truth that if we are called to experience trials it is because God has purposes to accomplish through them and that we can bring glory to him if we meet these trials and pass through them with our faith strong and intact.
Without Romans 8:28 our suffering would be intolerable and we might rightly conclude that our sorrows are meaningless.
But we do have Romans 8:28. God has given it to us a gift of his grace. Of course, we need to exercise good judgment when we bring comfort to God’s people as they suffer. Of course, we need to choose the truth that fits the circumstance. Of course, we need to ensure we are not forcing a harsh or inaccurate interpretation of the passage as so many have done with this verse. But as for me, there are few verses more comforting and more encouraging than this one.
God is working out his good will not despite dark days, difficult trials, and broken hearts, but through them.Share
Because Romans 8:28 exists, those who love God and are loved by him can have confidence that he is working through all of life’s circumstances to bring good out of bad, light out of darkness, joy out of sorrow. It’s not that God is especially agile, a kind of cosmic PR man adept at manipulating circumstances, but rather that he is the Planner, the Engineer, the Designer who has ordained the means just as much as the end. He ordains the calm and the storm, the darkness and the dawn, the famine and the feast. This being the case, no event is meaningless, no situation purposeless, no condition ultimately hopeless. God is working out his good will not despite dark days, difficult trials, and broken hearts, but through them. Such circumstances are the raw material he uses to form and shape his good plans, his perfect purposes.
God’s specialty is not bringing good from good, but good from bad and Romans 8:28 gently tells me that if I trust him through my tears, he will give me reason to laugh; if I trust him through my pain, he will teach me to praise; if I trust him through my grief, he will afterwards show me all the good that came with it and through it. He will show me the precious flowers in the dry desert, the beautiful blooms against the sharp thorns, the gentle petals beneath the vicious skies. For behind every black cloud is a yellow sun, behind every dark night a bright day, behind every frowning providence a smiling face—the smiling face of the God who works all things for good for those who love him and are called according to his purpose.1

May the Lord be with you and bless you today.

Once again you’ll find a selection of new Kindle deals.
Ever Yours, Sin
Here’s a fresh take on sin and sanctification: A letter from sin to the redeemed soul.
The History Of Transformation Church And Mike Todd (Video)
This is a really interesting look at Mike Todd and Transformation Church. (Also, here’s Todd Friel on How Sitting Under Weak Preaching Actually Puts You In Danger)
Get Acquainted with a Forgotten Treasure
Although William Burkitt is not well-known in our day, he was known and acclaimed in days past as an especially brilliant expositor and commentator. His Expository Notes, with Practical Observations, on the New Testament is being reprinted and Derek Thomas says, “Generations to come will now profit from his exceptionally good comments.” (Sponsored)
Your Physical Health is a Spiritual Issue
“There are many things as a pastor that are difficult to speak about. Divorce is one of those, for instance, because so many people are impacted by divorce. Increasingly, all sexual ethics are challenging to speak about because there are often homosexual people in our audiences or people who are living with someone who isn’t their spouse.”
Serving God in Unglamorous Places
I appreciate Stephen Steele’s call for pastors to consider ministry in places less glamorous than big cities.
Secondary Enemy
Counselor Crystal Kershaw writes about a counselee who “fought a fierce battle to overcome a troublesome pattern of sin in her life. It was a significant struggle, but she fought hard with the weapons of truth, humility, and faith. Through Christ’s resurrection power, she gained victory. Yet now she finds herself attacked by a secondary enemy, an unexpected one.”
Treasures of Darkness
Donna writes about some of the treasures of the darkness she has experienced lately.
Flashback: How Many Loves Have You Experienced Today?
The God who loves created a world of love. What a pleasure it is to live in this world, his world, and to experience love as both a giver and a receiver of its infinite forms.

Affliction is a bitter root, but it bears sweet fruit. —Thomas Watson

Aileen and I have just wrapped up a lovely little vacation on New Zealand’s South Island. Having just reached our twenty-fifth anniversary and with both our girls now in college, we took the opportunity to let Air Canada travel miles take us as far as they could. We enjoyed ourselves a lot and at the end of it all offer these brief reflections on New Zealand.

Friendly people. There are lots of friendly cultures out there, but I have never experienced people as consistently friendly as New Zealanders (and this was true of my last visit as much as this one). From strangers in the towns to employees in the stores to Christians who were eager to offer hospitality, we didn’t encounter a single person who wasn’t eager to meet us or serve us.
One lane bridges. Somewhere way back in New Zealand history someone must have decided that the country could save a lot of money by making bridges only one lane wide rather than two. And so driving involves routinely slamming on the brakes to wait for oncoming cars to make their way down that single lane. Quirky! And probably a bit annoying during peak tourist season.
Tourists. Speaking of which, we chose to visit at the exact opposite of peak season. We would rather see a place when it may not be quite as beautiful but when it also won’t be quite so crowded. That worked well. It was wintery for our visit, but that suited us fine. The driving was always simple enough and never dangerous (though we did just avoid a couple of road closures by no more than a day or two). And even at non-peak some of the touristy sites were quite busy, making us wonder what it’s like in summer. And especially so in a place like Milford Sound.
Beauty. There are many nations that boast an incredible amount of natural beauty. While I have not visited them all, I have been blessed to visit many. New Zealand is without a doubt right up there. I still think Norway is probably the most incredible place I have been, and both Switzerland and Scotland rank highly as well, but New Zealand now takes its place among them. Everywhere you go there is something wonderful to see, some of it mountainous and harsh, some of it pastoral and green, some of it roiling and oceanic.
Uninhabited. We were surprised at how much of New Zealand is uninhabited. Much of the land is committed to conservation and so is largely untouched for that reason. But then much else is simply the way it must have been many hundreds or thousands of years ago. We drove 2,500 kilometers so truly saw the country, and we often encountered stretches of 100 kilometers or more with no homes, no towns, no people. And, very often, no cell phone reception. It was glorious. But we did quickly realize we needed to make sure we kept our gas tank relatively full.
Doubtful Sound. I have been to many beautiful spots in the world, but Doubtful Sound may top them all. If not, it’s well within the top-five. Milford Sound was incredible as well and had by far the better drive, but we visited Doubtful Sound on a day that was dark and brooding and it was truly a sight to behold. I took many photos but none of them really seem to adequately capture its haunting beauty. I can’t recommend making that day trip too highly. The Lord very nearly outdid himself when he created that area. It is utterly magnificent. (And, despite the name, is a fiord rather than a sound.)
Speed limit. The otherwise-unmarked speed limit in New Zealand is 100 km/h (62 mph) versus 80 km/h in Canada and something roughly similar in the US. This is true even when roads are just one lane in each direction and when they are twisting, winding, and wet. We were assigned an SUV that came with a rollover danger warning and this made things … interesting. And fast. If you don’t drive the limit you are soon guaranteed to have an eager driver hanging on your tail and waiting to sneak by you, probably just beyond the next one lane bridge.
Sandwiches. New Zealand has great sandwiches. Every time we wanted lunch we stopped at a little cafe or restaurant and every time we received a great sandwich or toasty. The food was consistently expensive but consistently good.
Coffee. Australia and New Zealand are different countries (much to the surprise of one of my friends when I told him I was coming here) but they are bound together by this—they both have bad coffee, at least by my assessment. They say the definition of insanity is to keep doing the same thing while hoping for a different result. Well I keep ordering the long black hoping to eventually experience a really good one. I’m still waiting.
Trash. If Jesus had lived in 21st century New Zealand rather than first-century Palestine, he might have replaced his “camel through the eye of a needle analogy” with “it is easier to find a garbage can in New Zealand than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” And everyone would have marveled at how difficult it is for a rich man to be saved. Because good luck finding a place to throw out your trash in New Zealand. We even stayed in hotels that insisted we take it with us rather than leave it behind!
We had a really good time here, both interpersonally and in exploring a delightful country. We very much hope to return in the future.