Pure Joy

Through this whole experience with Riley I have found myself asking God a ton of questions. It is hard when you see your daughter in a hospital bed with tubes and needles in her and your prayers don't seem to be working. You get frustrated and angry at times wondering why things happen the way they do and why if God is such a good God does he allow these sort of things to happen....It is tough and I know some of you have had these thoughts as well it, it is the question that keeps so many people away from God and away from church.....WHY DOES GOD LET BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE???....I mean really if we serve this all powerful loving God then why is there sickness, war, starving children, and well you get the idea....Now by no means do I think I have figured out the answer to this question, but there are a few things that I have learned through my experiences with Riley that have helped give me peace.

1. We live in a fallen world......I know it sounds super spiritual and it makes me cringe a little by saying it because I can't stand "Christian" sayings......however it is true, you see because Adam and Eve ate that stupid apple, God had to punish them because He is perfect and just...that punishment is what opened the door to sickness, disease, and every other thing horrible in this world.....it was by our actions through Adam that these horrible things were brought into this world.....God created a paradise and we screwed it up.......hoooorrrraaaayyyyy Adam

2. I only see "Good" through my eyes, my fallen eyes.....Think about the story of Joseph, his brothers plot to kill him, then throw him in a pit, then sell him into slavery.....then Potiphar's wife being the lady that she was says that he tried to force himself on her which was a lie, so he then gets thrown in jail where he rots....two guys he interprets dreams for, well really one guy cause the other one got his head cut off, forget about him and he stays in jail until he is finally remembered and basically saves a nation from a famine.......Now through my fallen eyes I don't see much good in Josephs life, I see a little bit of good at the end and a lot of getting the short end of the stick for a long time....However, you have to imagine or at least I do that the God of the universe who is the only good, perfect, and true being sees the good in what is happening to Joseph....God knows that these situations that Joseph has been put in are for GOOD....if it had not been for Joesph showing up in Egypt and entire nation could have perished due to a famine....who are we and for that matter who was Joseph to ever question God and ask why things happen they way they do............

Isaiah 45:9
"Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker,
to him who is but a potsherd among the potsherds on the ground.
Does the clay say to the potter,
'What are you making?'
Does your work say,
'He has no hands'?

3. Romans 8:28.....God works all things together for good for those who love him and have been called according to his purpose........This is great news.......Simply put if you love God and do things that are right by him....he will work all things together for good.....I look at my beautiful daughter who has never been home and has only seen her big brother three time and it breaks my heart, I will not lie and say some cliche phrase...H0wever, I know that God is working I have read people's blog comments, I have seen my friends lives changed through this, I have seen my parents and the change that has happened to them.....it has been amazing......Yes, it stinks when things happen to us that are hard to deal with and our emotions and feelings are screwed up, but there is hope in the PROMISE that God will work all things together for GOOD for those that love him......I can honestly say that gives me such a peace regardless of what happens with Riley, that no matter what he is going to work all things together for good for me and my family because we love him..........(sigh)

4. JESUS HEALS.........Out of all my questions of, "Does God cause this?", "Did God allow this?", "Is this because we live in a fallen world?", "Do you think God will allow me to punch Adam for the pain I feel?"........The one saving grace that trumps every question that doesn't have an answer is JESUS HEALS......You just look at any of the Gospels and you see Jesus healing thats what he does and thats what he did.....Anytime, anyone would say Jesus if it is your will you can heal me, he would.....It is his will for us to be healed it is heart, but the thing that we must always remember is that we are already healed.......When Jesus hung on that cross and died we were and are healed he took our sins, sickness, and diseases and bore them for us.......He took them becoming the one time greatest of all sacrifices.......Now the thing we must remember and what I struggle daily to remember is that my idea of healing through my eyes, my "Fallen Eyes" maybe different than what God's idea of healing is for Riley, but never the less she is healed......Just because it does not match my idea of healing does not make it anyless a healing and it definitely does not make him anyless God.


I don't know if this helps anyone, but for some reason I could not sleep I had to write this at 1 in the morning.

Looking at pain is like looking at a mosaic.....when you are up close to it you can only see the little broken pieces of glass that are glued to the wall or whatever, but when you step back from it and look you see this whole beautiful picture and how each little broken piece of glass has its place and if one piece was missing that mosaic would not be the same........I feel that in away is how our trials are that we face....each trial has its place and it is the trials that God allows/causes however you want to look at it that make you who you are..... when we face trials we must step back just like with a mosaic and ask God what it is that he wants to show us........because what is the point of the trial if you miss what God is wanting to show you....

James 1:2-4
2Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.