Do you ever wonder that? What is the Lord doing in your life, your church, in your ministry?

The short answer is that He is working out His purpose in all those areas. And what is His purpose? We often quote Romans 8:28 as a comfort when we go through trials and disappointments.

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

Romans 8:28 NLT

That promise certainly is a comfort, unless we cannot determine what the Lord’s purpose for our lives is.

Pastor and Christian broadcaster Alistair Begg addresses this topic:

“At one time or another, every Christian confronts the question ‘What is God’s will for my life?’ When it comes to the specifics, the answer will differ for each of us according to context and calling… One thing is certain, however: whatever our unique paths through life may be, God’s purpose is to shape us into the image of His Son, Jesus Christ.”

Sometimes, we see our challenges as learning experiences. They can be, that’s for sure. And we ought to learn from the rough waters we experience as we go through our lives. The saying is true—“A calm sea doesn’t make a skilled sailor.” But is that all that God is doing as we deal with the storms of life, the rough seas, the difficult days?

In My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers encourages us to change our thinking about trials. He says they are not just teaching us to endure; God has a higher purpose than that.

“What God wants to do is to use all of these experiences—good and bad—to grow you spiritually and mold you into the likeness of Jesus, and to shape you for the unique purpose He has in your life.”

Chambers adds:

“We are not responsible for the circumstances we are in, but we are responsible for the way we allow those circumstances to affect us; we can either allow them to get on top of us or we can allow them to transform us into what God wants us to be.”

So, what is God up to? Those challenges He allows? Those trials that seem to come one after the other? Is that just for our edification, our perseverance? No. Remember what Alistair Begg said. “God’s purpose is to shape us into the image of His Son, Jesus Christ.”

And if we understand that, it makes the trials and rough seas worthwhile.

God’s best,