Welcome to Joni and Friends… I’m Joni Eareckson Tada.
Someone asked me the other day, “Joni, after your diving accident, what was that one thing, that one moment, that verse or phrase; if you could narrow it down, what was that one thing that changed your whole perspective on life?”
Oh, my goodness, for me that was an easy question. I really can narrow it down to a simple phrase. And I can even tell you the night, the very occasion. It was after I got out of the hospital when every Thursday evening, a couple of us were meeting with our friend Steve Estes for Bible study. You see, my quadriplegia had not only shaken our faith, it had shaken the faith of a lot of my friends. And Steve was trying to answer our questions, sitting there with us with his open Bible. That night when he spoke I was stuck on one thing – if God’s will for His children is always a good thing, then why does God think suffering is good? I mean, He allowed my accident to happen; He allowed this wheelchair. So if God always has good and high intentions for His people, then does that mean He thinks my quadriplegia is good?
Steve took a moment to think about that one. And then he opened his Bible and showed us how God hates suffering. He absolutely hates it. When Jesus walked on earth, He spent most of His time relieving it. In lots of places in the Bible, God tells us to feed the hungry, clothe the poor, visit prisoners, and speak up for the helpless. God hates the isolated incident of suffering. Even when He has to punish sin, He says in Ezekiel chapter 18 that it gives Him no pleasure. But (and here’s the thing) God delights in how that suffering fits into this grand mosaic of good for us and glory for Himself. He sees the bigger picture, but we don’t. He sees the grand mosaic – how it will all turn out in the end – but on this side of eternity, we can’t. After a while, Steve closed his Bible, turned to me and said, “Joni, God permits what He hates to accomplish that which He loves.” And with that phrase a light bulb went on. I got it. I understood it.
It was like, well, God permitted the cross of His own precious Son – He hated the cruelty that led up to it; the murder, the injustice and treason and torture. But He loved what the cross would accomplish – salvation for all who would but believe! In the same way, God hated my spinal cord injury – He allowed that awful, awful accident to happen which resulted in my permanent paralysis. But, He delighted in how my accident fit into a grand mosaic of good not only for me, but for so many other people with disabilities – people whom I’ve had a chance to help. And I’ve been able to help them with the same insights that blessed me: yes, God will permit things that He hates, but He’ll allow those things so that something that He loves can be accomplished. What are the good things that are part of the grand mosaic in your life? Is the suffering you are going through strengthening your faith? Or exposing an attitude that needs to be changed? Causing you to lean harder on God’s Word? Cultivating empathy toward others in your situation? Oh, friend, there are all kinds of good things that can come out of your suffering.
And if you need a reminder, please go to my radio page today at joniandfriends.org to watch a video of my testimony in which I share more about the hard things God permits which, in the end, result in some amazingly good stuff. And if it encourages you, then share it with your Facebook friends – especially those who are struggling with questions about God’s goodness and His sovereignty. And you can feel free to tell them: God permits what He hates to accomplish that which He loves.
© Joni and Friends
Used by permission of Joni and Friends
P.O. Box 3333, Agoura Hills, CA 91376