Have you ever wondered how God could work all things together for good in your life? Maybe you’re in a situation that feels impossible, a marriage that is unraveling, a job environment that is unhealthy and all you can see is HARD.
In my Proverbs 31 Ministries devotion today, I share how I wrestled with this in the midst of very difficult circumstances during and after our daughter’s adoption, and the ways God showed me HOW He was working things for “good” in unexpected ways.
If you hopped over from my devotion, I’m so glad you stopped by! As promised, here are a few photos that tell part of the story of us bringing our beautiful girl home. {And there’s special giveaway at the end of this post.}
All I could see were the hard parts. Everything we would have to give up: sleep, money, comfort, familiarity, others’ approval. All the hard things we would have to navigate: huge expenses and significant changes.
What if our sons resented us for re-arranging their lives forever? What if our parents and extended family didn’t approve? What if we exhausted our time, emotions and money only to end up with broken hearts and an empty bank account? How could God work all that together for good?
I could not see how. I could only see “hard.” Yet we knew God was calling our family to adopt a severely malnourished baby girl from Ethiopia. And in October 2009 we brought Aster home.
Was it hard? Yes. Even more than I imagined.
But as I trace God’s hand over the past five years since we brought Aster home, I see Him working countless things {together} for good. Most of all, I see a handwritten love letter sent to our little girl from her Heavenly Father, written on every page of our adoption story.
I see God working the hard things together for good. Despite our inadequacy, sadness and fear of the unknown when Aster was diagnosed with a speech disorder, global developmental delays, low muscle tone and sensory processing disorder, I now see God working it all for good.
I see God working the overwhelming things together for good. A year of sleepless nights brought out servant-hearted compassion in our teenage sons when they saw their dad struggling with depression caused by sleep-deprivation. I’ll never forget the night they decided to take turns sleeping on a mattress in their sister’s room to relieve her anxiety and give us back our desperately needed sleep.
I see God working even the embarrassing things together for good. Like the day I had a meltdown in my car and a stranger tapped on my window to see if I was okay. And that same afternoon, I ran out of gas on my way to get my youngest son at basketball which mean my oldest son, who had a new cast on his broken foot, had to push our car off the road. I see awesome stories for them to tell their children about me one day.
When my reality doesn’t look or feel like “good” to me, I ask God to help me see how. How he is keeping his promise that “in all things [He] works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Roman 8:28).
What I’ve discovered is this: God is always working things together for good, but not just for our good. Sometimes we are part of His working things together for someone else’s good.
You see, I believe Jesus heard a mother in Africa praying for her baby. A mother who was living in the middle of “hard” like I’d never imagined. A mother who couldn’t see how she could give her little girl the nurture and nutrition she needed.
Hagere: Aster’s birth-mother feeding her during our visit.
And when God heard that mama’s prayers, He tapped on the heart of a family in North Carolina who loved Him and were called according to His purpose. I also believe God saw an orphanage in Ethiopia searching for a forever family to provide unconditional love and medical care for a 6-month old, 8 pound baby with pneumonia.
So Jesus went back to that family in North Carolina who had been asking God to reveal Himself to them and through them, knowing this little girl would be an answer to that prayer.
And that’s when God started working the hard, impossible, and overwhelming things {together} for good.
Is there a relationship or situation in your life where all you see is hard? Have you asked God how He can work some part of it together for good?
I don’t know about you, but some days I need a tangible reminder that He can. A visual that prompts me to pray and helps me remember how He does, like the beautiful bead necklace I’m wearing below made from repurposed bullets found in the rubble of Ethiopian soil.
Each time I look at it, I remember how God answered a desperate mother’s prayers for her baby and filled my family’s longing to experience more of Him. Only He could know how much we needed the gift of a little girl to light up our world, and to remind us that He indeed can work even the hardest things {together} for good.
ENTER TO WIN To celebrate how Jesus takes the hard and heart-breaking realities of life and works them together for good, Proverbs 31 Ministries is partnering with Fashion & Compassion to create a beautiful jewelry line from repurposed bullets found in the rubble of Ethiopian soil. “SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS” under this post and you’ll be entered to win.
The From Bullets to Blessings Collection is handcrafted from Ethiopian bullets, dug out of rubble, and assembled by vulnerable and rescued women throughout Mexico and Charlotte, NC. CLICK HERE to find out more about the collection and the women who create these pieces. It’s a beautiful picture of God working the hard things together for good in their lives through Fashion & Compassion.
What a great reminder that no matter how bad things seem, God has a plan and he sees the big picture.
Your daughter is beautiful! As a mother of five, I can’t imagine having to give up a child. That is what unselfish love is all about. Exactly what Jesus did for us. My family is going through an extremely rough time right now, and I will admit, I haven’t exactly been strong enough to get through each day of it. However, I know in my heart that God will work all things together for good once we are through the storm. Thank you for sharing your story. It was very encouraging.
What a Blessing your family is for this beautiful child of God! Oftentimes God see the rainbow, when we only see the clouds……praise God for your willingness to be used by Him!
Thank you for sharing your story, your family, your love! May God continue to bless you and your family! The earrings are beautiful!
I read your story of Aster, then Tracie’s about how God uses our trials. II Cor. 1:3,4 has pretty much become ‘my’ life – mostly because of the deaths of family/friends. God doesn’t waste any of these experiences when we let Him wash His healing over us, trusting Him in the hard, and walking with Him, leaning on His strength, and He truly does work all things together for good, to those who are loved and called according to His purpose.
Thank u for sharing this. I have been through the hardest time of my life these past 10 months. My husband believes beyond a shadow of doubt that I have been having an affair and then believed I was trying. To make him believe that. I have been called and told things no woman should ever be told by the man they love. My flesh has wanted to quit numerous times! But I have found My God is faithful! Can’t go into all the details but the trial is still here I just have a different view! Spiritual eyes. I know that God will use all this hurt and pain for good one day. Thank u because this really ministered to me. Be blessed
I love our God! The Holy Spirit just brought this Scripture to me this morning before I read this. I’m currently watching a loved one going thru some hard stuff and they are in need of encouragement and this Scripture was the one that came to mind. Thank you for sharing your life story!
thanks for the reminder that it’s not always MY good that is the focus!
Blessing to you and your family for “hearing” the call. May your road become easier, but your hearts still fulfilled. May your testimony build character and obediance in my life and help me to “see” and “hear” my own calling.
Such a touching story of a child who needed stability and another family who felt led to adopt this child as their own. I am awed by your obedience to the Father and how all things worked together for good as Romans 8:28 says. May you be blessed in your journey as a family that honors God and brings a testimony of God’s love to those around you.
Beautiful! Love the part about things working out for good, just maybe not my personal good! New perspective on that verse.
Thank you! I needed to read this today, as we are in the process of being approved to be foster parents to a 15 year old girl, with much opposition from family. I don’t know how it is all going to work, but as you say, God does.
I feel kinda selfish for even posting this ( what I have been through is nothing compared to that mother giving up her baby.) but I recently saw God work something heartbreaking out for good. TWO STORIES to tell. I have a daughter who dropped out of high school right before turning 18 and disappeared I worried I cried I searched all to no avail, it was almost 3 years before she came home…. bringing with her a beautiful ( 5 mo). redhead little girl. My first grand baby and 3 grandchildren later still my only granddaughter. Laura Story’s Blessings is my song and my little Alana is worth every tear and every sleepless night. I have another daughter whom I loved her daddy very much. The night I told him I was pregnant was the night he walked out. He said he didn’t want another child ( he had three from a previous marriage) fast forward to this past Feb the 8th my daughter gave birth to my fourth grand child little Jayden Thomas, standing in my kitchen a couple of weeks back feeding him a chocolate chip cookie I realized every moment of pain going through my pregnancy with my child and birthing her alone raising her without her father…. all the pain turned to pure joy while feeding my little blessing Jayden that cookie.
Beautiful! Thank you for sharing.
Thanks for sharing how God worked in your family’s life to be open to the possibilities that God offers each of us. Aster is one of those special blessings that God had in mind for you and your family. It is never easy to open up and listen to what we are asked to do. Some days are just hard and this helps me to look for the good that can come in the midst of struggle.
Thank you for this post. I needed to hear this today.
I am struggling to see “all working for good” in the midst of my hurts. But I believe Him though I have not seen Him.
Thank you for sharing your struggles to encourage others. Blessings upon you.
Thank you for this beautiful testimony today. I was very touched by it. I find myself in “hard places” more than I care to be — often struggling with the “easy things” that I watch my friends sail right through, yet I find myself fighting the waves, changing current, and ebbs and tides of the situation. There are times when I simply wonder if the enemy has assigned an imp specifically to me to just make things hard. But I am always REASSURED that God has a plan and purpose for everything he allows us to endure. So, though I struggle … I also trust God. As my favorite scripture (Proverbs 3: 5-6) reminds me, I am to trust God, lean not to my understanding, acknowledge Him in everything, and He will direct my paths. So though I inwardly hope that things will become easier, I also know that God may allow the thorn in my side to remain by his permissive will to keep me depending on Him. I know that in my loving Father’s PERFECTNESS, He has ways that I don’t understand, resources that I don’t know of, and a supply of grace and mercy to see me through all my needs. With that, I won’t give up because I have an inexhaustible source of help.
May God continue to bless you and your lovely family. Praise God for your obedience concerning Aster despite the unknown “hard places” that came with your decision. I am grateful for your honesty … yes, Christians can face “hard places” in life. We are not exempt from that. Today’s devotional has truly been an inspiration for me!!!!!
Thank you for sharing your family’s story. There is such pain in the world. But if each of us does a little, together with Christ we can move mountains. Thank you for the opportunity to share this with my quilt group. I am responsible for devotions for our retreat this weekend and i know this will touch their hearts as it touched mine.
Thank you for sharing this post today. You have a beautiful family and I really love your blog.
Winners NEVER Quit . . . .Quitters Never win . . . .Thanks for allowing me to WIN!
Amen Jesus . . . .
Renee,
I have followed your journey with baby Aster well she’s not a baby anymore!! I’ve read your struggles, concerns, melt downs etc I have to say, your strength, faith & encouragement have helped me numerous times during my difficult journey in this temporary life.
This summer I had 2 life changing events occur, the loss of a man I thought was the one but that wasn’t the biggest betrayal he caused, besides the lying, cheating & allowing me to love his daughter as my own, he played a part in being fired from my dream job as a flight nurse, something I’ve worked for my entire career.
Through this devastating time though, I’ve been blessed beyond measure. One of our previous pilots & his wife who I’ve never met were my strong cheerleaders. God provided them to me to get through this hard lesson. I would love to win the earrings to send to her. Their faith is strong & mighty. I’m learning God has a very different plan for me. I’m hoping to go with a medical team to Haiti next year, my sister just left Tuesday with a group of amazing women from our church!! Please say a little prayer for them.
Thank you for your blogs, it helps to read the struggles every Christian woman experiences!!
Give Aster & the boys hugs & kisses from our family to your, god bless all of you.
What a wonderful story of God’s plans working every time. Thank you for this blessing!
Thank you Father God for using Aster to bring some many blessings to this family .Thank you Renee for sharing your story. It is greatly encouraging to be able to look back and see the blessings from such hard times. I have been blessed by your story. We too are going through a hard place. I look forward to being able to see the blessings from this time. I know that God is faithful !
Wow! Thank you so much for sharing, Renee! I, too, can’t imagine being that mom having to say good-bye to my little one who would be going so far away, yet the hope that must have been in her heart! This adds to what I have been reading this morning about praising God in the difficult things, as well as the good, for all He as done for us and given us. We don’t always know what it good for us and bring our preconceived ideas to God. We must let God decide what is best for our eternal souls and the souls of others. (Merlin Carothers – Praise News – November 2 014) Perhaps we want to know too much – more than we need to know at the time- God knows (from my husband). Along with this from Gary Wilkerson: “Thankfulness is faith. It’s simply an outward expression that we believe God will do what He promised. it is believing He will keep us through any season of our lives.” (World Challenge Pulpit Series – “A note from Gary Wilkerson” – August 18, 2014.) I hope this makes sense. God continue to bless you and your precious family richly. Praise God for lessons learned in both the good and difficult! I am doing that too, as I have been working consistently for the past month and 1/2 – outside the home- for the first time in nearly 28 years. I am 58 years young. 🙂
What an amazing story of how God works! I am sure it was hard for her birth mother to say goodbye, but it had to make her feel better that her daughter was being adopted by a wonderful, loving family. She is a beautiful girl and I sure has blessed you over and over. Thank you for sharing your story!
Wow.. what a wonderful testimony of love and encouragement. Thank you for reminding us it is not always about “us”. What an inspiration your testimony God has provided shines the light of God’s love so everyone can see HIM through you. God has provided you with a wonderful family and ministry to share and you do it so wonderfully. May HE continue to bless you beyond measure.
Thanks for sharing this post today. I have been struggling through HARD for quite a few months now, and everything I have done, only seems to make things harder. I have been to the point of thinking God just wants me to be in pain and struggle. It doesn’t matter how much I pray, read the bible and devotionals, such as yours, nothing I am doing is bringing even a glimmer of light at the end of this long, black tunnel. There is no one in my home who shares my faith, so I basically have to fight alone. I have a wonderful Christian counselor who I have reached out to again, hoping to ease the pain. I am currently housebound, so everything I do is through phone or written communication. I have always suffered from chronic depression, so this many months of pain and infirmity, has brought it to the forefront. I haven’t given up hope yet, and your post helped to affirm my continuing battle through “hard.” God bless!
Renee you and your family are a true blessing to Aster and her precious Mom. The dedication and love of your 2 boys to their baby sister was heart warming. Aster
is so precious too Renee. Your devotion confirms to me that Our Lord and Savior is in our Reality as well. I was having doubts that God will see me through but somehow He was not in my reality here on earth. Your devotion has helped me see that Jesus is in my reality here on earth as well. I had hysterectomy surgery but the doctor injured me now I am praying I do no have to go through open surgery again for them to cut me open again that would mean longer time away from work. I pray my injury can be correct and I get back to normal soon.
But Renee you and your husband and children has shown me today that its not about me only that God is also working in the lives of others as well. You have given Aster and her Mom a special gift. You are now Aster precious Mommy too.
God BLESS you and your entire family and Aster ‘s other Mom.
Thanks for the encouragement when HARD has been going on for so many years and GOOD has not yet made an appearance.
We also adopted. We have had many challenges with our little girl but God has been so merciful and has given us all the strength and hope we’ve needed. Without a doubt he is working everything for good!
Lord give me you eyes for just one second to see what you see in others and in circumstances. AMEN
Thank you for sharing. You are so right, it’s so hard to see how God is working things for good when you are in the middle of a storm. For me it’s so hard to trust Him and know that there is a purpose for those hard times. Thanks for giving hope.
Oh my goodness! You are exactly describing my situation now. We adopted domestically two little boys with hard beginnings but have the same issues you are facing with your sweet little girl right now! We still have the sleepless nights, I am now in the process of having the older boy evaluated for school services, in fact just got off the phone with starting the process. I can’t seem to be able to keep up on the house with all of the housework, cooking cleaning, therapy, etc., etc. We are seeing an adoption counselor for behavioral issues, and have health issues, and just plain are tired. I do know Jesus will work this all out for good, for us, for the boys, for our extended family, for other parents who are struggling with adoption issues, and for other people who are needing hope. Yes just last week I was a puddling mess, and today I’m not feeling so overwhelmed, but know I have a ton on my plate yet, but the Lord assured us without a doubt that He was, in this adoption. We can see His hand in all of this, and He has assured us He will give us everything we need to raise our/His boys.
Thank you for this timely post, this speaks to me exactly where I am today……Like Jesus speaking these words to me to give me the boost and encouragement I need(ed). Many blessings!
Blessings to All!
Thank you Renee for honestly sharing your life – your words truly encourage me (as well as countless others).
I had lived in the “hard” for so very long that it was impossible to see the “how.” I grew up in a dysfunctional family (looked good on the outside but was “hell” behind the closed doors. I lived in fear for most of my childhood & left home in my teens. Imagine life for a teenage girl in the streets of Chicago & then think even worse). I had thought if I could only try harder maybe it would get better, maybe I could get better, be better and yet I felt I’ll never be good enough. I felt so alone, so dirty, so worthless…
What I didn’t know was God was ordering my steps so that I would be able to help other women see how they are loved by an amazing God. That He has made me a new creation, that I am shiny & sparkling clean.
Having lived in the “hard” I’m able to share hope in the “how” = crying out to God in all the brokenness & coming to believe that Jesus washed me clean.
I am holy, righteous & redeemed!
Janet A.
What a powerful story!
Thank you for this beautiful story. As a mother of two little ones I often wonder how I will manage all that lies before me each day…. it is truly by God’s grace that we all care for our children. My mother was born and raised in Asmara, Ethiopia. She has shared countless stories of growing up and your story has added to the blessings of knowing that we serve a mighty God. A God who knows no geography or boundaries.
Thank you for sharing and I pray that my family would also be ever reminded of our need to listen to God’s voice. To follow His calling regardless of how dificult we may feel that it will be.
May God bless you and your family.
May God richly bless you and your family for your willingness to follow His leading in your lives. Thank you for sharing your story.
Renee,
This post came at the perfect time in my life. I have been selfishly thinking that God isn’t giving me the good for my life without realizing that He could be working through me to offer someone else the good. It really has changed my perspective on how He is working my life. He is working good in my life just not in the way I expected but in His way. Thank you so much for sharing!
Thanks for sharing your story! What a beautiful daughter – and an amazing journey! And I appreciate the reminder that sometimes God uses us for the good of someone else. My prayer is to be open to God’s prompting – to be used by Him to bless others.
What an Awesome story! So precious, and hope for others to see God is in control of the ending.
Thank you for sharing this story! God has truly been revealing this to our family lately. We have been dealing with the struggles of my teenage stepdaughter making choices we never would have hoped or dreamed for her life. Yet God! God knew that this is what it was going to take for her to discover her need for Him, for her mother to deal with anger issues and for us to grow closer as a family! God has used this trial for her good and for our good. I love how God knows every detail of our lives and has the most beautiful stories written for our futures that we cannot even imagine!
What an answered prayer for me this morning. I am struggling so despperatly right now with my own daughter. As I came downstairs this morning I was reminded about praying for her specifically and your devotion this morning was the reminder I needed to remember that God DOES have a plan and I may not see it right now but I just have to trust in Him. Pray for me and my daughter, Megan, that we can work together peacfully and also that God will soften her heart to the help that so many are trying to give her. She’s 10 years old and is struggling at school with her Learning Disabilities, ADHD, and possibly dyslexia and dysgraphia. She is so angry at everything. Your prayers are SO appreciated. God Bless
Renee,
What a beautiful story and your daughter is a beautiful little girl. Please keep sharing with us the fruit that God reveals from your having opened up your heart to your daughter in her need just like He opens up His heart to us daily in our need.
Thank you so much for sharing your story, Renee. I am struggling with ME and it is affecting my marriage as well as friendships. I have allowed Satan to tell me how I am not good enough, not pretty enough. I am trying to hold onto God’s promises but I still struggle. Can you please pray for me?
Thank you for sharing. In the midst of my storm where all I can see is “Hard” I need to be reminded that God sees the “How”.
Thank you for sharing your story! May God continue to bless your family and may you feel his presence as he walks through every “hard” thing with you!
Amazing devotion, and perfect timing. My family is going through a very tough ‘season’ right now, and I sometimes feel SO emotionally inadequate to handle these trying times, but I have to remember GOD IS FAITHFUL and is working good in ALL things, maybe NOT for me. Thanks for sharing, and may God bless you. In HIS service, Terri.
I know a family who has adopted 5 children (three girls from China and a girl and a boy from Guatemala), several with special needs. It truly takes dedicated parents to undertake such a commitment as you have….Jesus is for sure at the center of your family. Thanks for sharing.
God is carrying me through remembering and grieving the beautiful, gentle man that I married and lost.
I began losing him to Alzheimer’s Disease which was diagnosed in 2008. And then I lost him completely when he passed away on July 12, 2014.
Through the hard times, God continues to provide soft landing places, mostly through the shared sacred stories of others.
Thank you for sharing the story of your beautiful family. May God and bless keep you all in His comfort and care.
~ teRi
What a beautiful story and what timing. Our adopted daughter (26) has fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. We did not know this until recently and I usually felt like a failure as a mom. Who am I kidding, I still feel that way. Today her life is in a downward spiral. I am so concerned for her and her two precious boys. The boys, 5 and 2, are with us most of the time and we feel we should have custody but are afraid of what it will do to our daughter and that it may give their dad opportunity to gain custody which would not be good. He has a history of abusing women (we saw the evidence on our daughter many times before the courts intervened) and abusing children. He was however recently acquitted on the child abuse charges…we do not understand how the judge could reach that conclusion. My heart is so pained. Our family members (including our other children) do not understand fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and that adds to our burden. Some days we wonder if we misread God’s will when we adopted. Today’s blog was a good read for me. Thank you for sharing.