“What if what feels like the end of the story is actually just the middle? When God is the author of your story, you can trust that his grace will have the final word.”- Kyle Idleman
“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.”- romans 8:28 (NIV)
In Chapter 10 (“More Hopeful Than Your Despair”), the concluding chapter of Grace Is Greater, Kyle Idleman states we reach a point in our story where we want to stop reading. Our challenge overwhelms us, the situation seems impossible, the pain too much.
Yet, in Romans 8:28, Paul tells us God will bring a good ending to our story- no matter how bad our current chapter seems to us. That’s the promise of grace. However, when adversity strikes, Kyle states, it’s easy to view Romans 8:28 as at best naïve, but more likely offensive.
Pastor Idleman researched the Greek word translated “we know.” As a result, he discovered the Greek word means “an absolute, unshakable, confidence.” In addition, Kyle notes, Paul also uses the word translated “we know” in Romans 8:22. That passage reads: “We know that the whole creation has been groaning.”
In other words, Paul says, we can count on two things:
- Life is hard (v. 22)
- God is good (v. 28)
But, Kyle adds, sometimes the space between these two truths feels like an eternity.
As Pastor Idleman concludes, he admits it’s fun knowing the end of the story before the actual ending. Perhaps that’s because once we know how the story turns out, we’re more comfortable processing the information. Therefore, we turn our focus on a deeper understanding of the story.
Although we lose some of the suspense, that allows us to not only just enjoy the journey. It allows us to actually enjoy it.
Today’s question: What feels like the end of the story for you? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “How we define the word ‘good’ “
