By Rev. Steven P. Gunther
I have a phrase I often repeat to myself when I’m going through a difficult time: “In ten years, I’ll look back and be grateful that everything happened the way it did.”
It may sound strange to say that while something is going wrong, but I’ve found that one of the remarkable things about looking back on our lives is seeing how often something difficult actually opened doors to experiences or insights that we never could have anticipated. One door closing in front of us might cause us to adjust course and find something remarkable. A mistake might teach us something we needed to learn. A painful experience might give us compassion or wisdom we didn’t have before. Something we never would have chosen becomes a part of the path toward something we are deeply grateful for.
I think this is one way of understanding Divine Providence. Growing up, I learned about Divine Providence as the Lord’s constant presence with us, gently leading and guiding us toward what is good. But that can be harder to believe when life actually gets hard. When the road ahead is uncertain, we might wonder if the Lord is leading me, why am I going through this?
I don’t think the answer is that the Lord sends hardships because we need to learn a lesson. Nor do I think that everything difficult is secretly good if only we could see it from the Lord’s perspective. Some things really are painful. Some things really do go wrong. The Lord’s ability to bring good out of anything does not mean that everything that happens to us is good.
Divine Providence means that no matter what happens, the Lord never stops working with it. He is always opening another door. He is always creating another opportunity for growth. He is always able to take even the things He did not will for us and weave them into His work of leading us toward something good.
And often, we can see that much more clearly looking backward than we ever could while we were living through it. So, when I find myself in one of those seasons when I cannot see where the road is going, I try to remember; in ten years, I might look back on this moment and finally see what the Lord was able to do with it.
I don’t have to pretend that today isn’t hard. I don’t have to know where this road leads. I just have to trust that the Lord does.