Every marriage hits a rough patch. At times it might feel like you’ll never get through it. We’ve been there countless times. It’s hard to see the good that God has for you in those moments, but I promise you it’s there.

Here’s some recent revelations we had where God was giving us good things in our marriage and our life that were hard to see at the time but now are clearly obvious.

Over the past few weeks we’ve been searching for a new community group though our church… while at a group this week, one of the big question asked has led to a lot of conversations in our marriage and we are excited to share it with you today.

Here’s the BIG question:

“How can you tell in your life that God is working all things for good?”

We have two examples where we’ve been able to clearly see God working all things for good:

For us, when Jeff was deployed to Iraq we really went through a tough time… but to add to it, we really were not Christians and took our faith pretty lightly.  So while Jeff was off on missions in Iraq which were extremely dangerous, we were not even praying during that time and it’s crazy to look back and see how God was there and sovereign over our lives.

And today, when we are going through a rough patch in our lives, personally or professionally, we are able to look back and find hope knowing just how much we previously overcame together during this deployment.  That season was able to shape our marriage and helped to bring us to where we are today – a place were our faith really plays such a huge role in our lives.

It’s hard to see in the middle of the struggle that is God working it for good.

One of the reasons we continue to podcast is because we have been there and know just how hard marriage can be.  We have been at a place where we’ve threatened divorce, been at an all time low without hope… and we know that many marriages are in that season of rock bottom now, so we hope to encourage you.

When we have a bad day today, it’s such a better-“bad day” than what it used to be.  Those are all the little things that we can see how God used the bad for good now.

Secondly, many of you know how we’ve been in the middle of our adoption journey for the past four years… and over those four years waiting and waiting… and waiting… and waiting more, it’s felt like we would never have a referral and be able to adopt.

But really, looking back, God knew that we needed this four year waiting period so that we would have the time and space to focus on our youngest sons behavioral issues.  Through it all we’ve been able to learn ourselves and change our tempers and how we respond to our kids, which in the end has made our home a more loving environment for our adopted daughter to be brought into.

It’s hard in the waiting when it feels like nothing is changing to see that God is working it for good.

Here’s a quote we’ll leave you with and hope encourages you for whatever the struggle you’re facing and for all those in the waiting that seems like it’s never going to end:

“The same struggle that you’re taking as a sign that you’re going to be destroyed is actually a sign that you’re going to be delivered.  Because if the devil could have destroyed you, he would have by now.  The fact that you’re still struggling is a sign that you are going to make it.”

 

LINKS FROM THE PODCAST 

Jeffs favorite shorts – Lulu Core Shorts

Romans 8:28