What If This Really Is God’s Best for You?
Wednesday Reid had major surgery. Thank you for praying, it was a success and now we walk the long road to recovery and continued treatment. This lesson that I’m sharing below has been on my heart for while and I’m excited to share what God is teaching me. -Shalice
I’ve been wrestling with this question lately.
“God, is this really the best You’ve got for me?”
Maybe you’ve asked it too.
A diagnosis you never expected. Financial hardship. A child walking through something difficult. More questions than answers. A future that feels uncertain.
And then you look around at everyone else and think, Why does their life seem so much easier than mine?
I found myself in Psalm 73, and honestly, I felt seen.
The psalmist is looking around at people who seem to have it all together. They’re prospering. They’re comfortable. Meanwhile, he’s struggling and wondering, What about me, God?
Our pastor recently walked us through Genesis 36 and the prosperity of the Edomites. They had wealth and success, but their prosperity wasn't proof of God's blessing. That really made me stop.
Because we so easily believe that an easy life means God is pleased with us, and a hard life means something has gone wrong.
But Scripture tells us otherwise.
Suffering doesn't mean God has left you. And prosperity doesn't necessarily mean God is blessing you.
Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (john 16:33)
So if God is sovereign, then I have to believe He isn't surprised by any of this.
He sees the whole road when I can barely see the next step.
He knows where I'm walking.
He knows where I'm limping.
And He is still God here.
This is the part I'm still learning to believe:
What if this is God's best for me?
Not because this is what I would have chosen.
I would choose comfort.
I would choose certainty.
I would choose the easy road.
But God's best isn't always the life I would choose. Sometimes His best is the meadow, and sometimes His best is the valley.
And maybe faith is saying, “God, I don't understand this. I wouldn't have chosen this. But I trust that You know what I don't.”
Psalm 73 ends with:
“But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge.”
That's what I want.
Not necessarily an easier life.
Not all the answers.
Just to be near Him.
So if you're sitting in your own waiting room right now, wondering why God hasn't changed your circumstances, I want you to know you're not forgotten.
This is not outside of His hands.
And maybe, just maybe, this road you never would have chosen is still God's best for you.
Even here.
Especially here.
After all, it’s as if Dostoevsky read John 16:33 when he said, "I accepted suffering and found peace."
John 16:33: "In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."
Shalice
