Submitted by Pastor David Shadinger, Rock Port & Watson United Methodist Churches

We live in a world that tries to explain away hardship. We often attribute our misfortune to disasters, natural causes, market fluctuations, human error or just bad luck. And yet, Scripture tells us that God is sovereign over all things.

So, does God cause suffering? Not necessarily. But God is present in everything, working through it, and redeeming it, usually for reasons known only to God.

The Bible tells us God is at work, not just in the good things, but in all things. We call this providence – a weighty theological proposition with a long history of interpretation. It is the belief that – as the word implies – God will provide.

This gets harder to believe when life is difficult, but still we rightfully cling to the idea that God is not just sovereign in those thrilling moments of blessing. Rather, God is in every moment – good, bad or mediocre. If we are truly children of God, everything is a God thing.

So, we trust God in the trials. When the rain doesn’t come, we still trust. When the locusts devour the crop, we still believe. When hardships overwhelm, we still hold onto faith. Because we know that God is always working.

We must be spiritually mature enough to realize that what looks like desolation may be preparation, that what seems like a delay may be a divine setup, or that what feels like a loss may be making way for something greater.

So, the next time someone says, “It’s a God thing,” let’s remember that it is not just when the blessing comes. It is also in the storm, in the locusts, or in the waiting. Because when we rejoice, suffer or understand, it is a God thing. And when we don’t, it is still a God thing.