'All Shall be Well'

In the context of the troubled world we are in, you may think my title is ludicrous. While songs may tell us 'Always look on the bright side' or 'Things can only get better', real life seems only to get worse. 

The quotation comes from nameless woman, who became known as Julian of Norwich. She lived in Norwich in the late 14th and early 15th Centuries, and became a hermit in the church of St. Julian - hence her name. 

But she lived in troubled times, when plagues killed many, and when life was very hard. After a severe illness, she had visions of Jesus and was overwhelmed by the sense of his love and compassion. She wrote about it in 'The Revelations of Divine Love', and her work has been studied by many. The most famous theme is often repeated. TS Eliot quotes her, in one of his poems, "And all shall be well and all manner of thing shall be well".

It may seem a lovely idea, but is it what Christians believe?

The answer is a resounding "Yes!".

St. Paul wrote to his friends in Rome, when life was very hard, and in the context of Christians being persecuted, and facing real suffering, '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. For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the first-born among many brothers and sisters.' (Romans 8.28-29)

At the heart of Paul's conviction about 'all shall be well' is his grasp of the goodness and purposes of God. 

Because God is supreme over all things, he is able to cause everything to work out - in the light of eternity and in the context of our present existence - so that committed Christ-followers are becoming more and more like Jesus. As Paul says, 'For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son. 

In practice, this means that today we can co-operate with God's purposes, so that our characters and behaviour are changed little by little to become more like the life of Jesus.

In practice, this also means that God can and will use tough times to do his deepest work in us. But we need to know that this is  for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

The Lord Jesus asks us to trust him not only with our eternal destiny, but with our present troubles. 

So I have to look at him dying for me to know that he loves me and longs for my good. That brings great comfort.

Best wishes,

Richard