I Don’t Have to Forget

In review of Romans 8:28 it says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (NIV).

Bottom Line:

God works for the good of those who love him and are called for his purpose.

What this means to me:

God uses what happens in my life for my good and for my development and growth.

Today’s verse comes from the last part of Romans 8. In it Paul explains that the Holy Spirit helps me in my weakness. I may not always know what or how to pray for what’s taking place. But I do have the Holy Spirit who prays for me with groaning that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows my heart, knows what the Spirit is saying on my behalf. And as a follower I’m told that God causes everything that happens to me to work together for my good. He does this because I love Him and His calling of his purpose for me.

This is good news. As a follower of Jesus, I'm not left to my own resources to cope with problems. Even when I don't know the right words to pray, the Holy Spirit prays with and for me, and God answers. With God helping me pray, I don't need to be afraid to come before him. All I need to do is ask the Holy Spirit to intercede for me "in harmony with God's own will." Then when I bring my requests to God, trust that he will always do what is best.

God works in "everything", not just isolated incidents, for my good. This does not mean that that happens to us is good. Evil is prevalent in our fallen world, but God is able to turn every circumstance around for my long-range good. God does not work to make us happy, but fulfill his purpose. This promise is not for everyone. It is something that can only be claimed by those who love Him and are called by him (those the Holy Spirit convinces and enables to receive Christ.) Such people have a new perspective, a new mind-set. They trust in God, not in life's treasures; their security is in heaven, not on earth. Their faith in God does not waver in pain and persecution because they know God is with them.

God's ultimate goal for me is to make me more like Christ. As I become more and more like him, I discover my true self., the person I was created to be. I can learn to be more like Christ by reading and heeding his Word, by studying his life on earth through the Gospels, by spending time in prayer, by being filled with his Spirit, and by doing his work in the world.

When it comes to relationships, these is a common phrase: “Forgive and forget.” There’s only one problem: However, It’s impossible! I really can’t forget a hurt in my life. In fact, I can’t even try to forget it. Because when I’m trying to forget, I’m actually focusing on the very thing I want to forget.

Forgetting is not what God wants me to do. Instead, he wants me to trust him and see how he can bring good out of it. That’s more important than forgetting, because then I can thank God for the good that he brought out of it. I can’t thank God for things I forget.

Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (NIV).

It doesn’t say that all things are good, because not all things are good. Cancer is not good. Disease is not good. Death is not good. Divorce is not good. War is not good. Rape and abuse are not good. A lot of things in life are evil. These are the realities of living in a world that’s been contaminated by sin.

But God says he will work good out of the bad things in life if I will trust him. When I come to him and say, “God, I give you all the pieces of my life,” he will return peace for my pieces. His peace in my heart comes from realizing that even if I don’t understand the hurt in my life, I can still forgive, knowing that God will use that pain for good.

I don’t have to forget the wrong thing that someone did to me. I can’t do it even if I try! But God says I don’t have to forget it. I just have to forgive and then see how he will bring good out of it.

This a great reminder for me as I go through the trying times in my life. Do what’s right and trust him with the outcome. He will do what’s best for me and what He has in mind for me to accomplish.