Amanda’s note: I am so happy to host Raelee May Carpenter, whose forthcoming novel Liberation Song is being published by my publisher in May.
So I have this writer friend. I mean, I have lots of writer friends, but this is one in particular, a writer of inspirational letters. He’s had… well, a hard life. He’s been put in prison, and he’s been shipwrecked, and he’s even survived an attempted stoning. And I’m not being metaphorical here; these things really, physically happened.
Oh, adversity! Now his sounds like a life that’s not gonna get anywhere, right?
Except millions of people from countries all over the world are reading his work every day… and this is nearly two thousand years after his death.
Saul of Tarsus’ writing has saved my own life more than once.
Maybe you’ve lost a job… or six. Maybe you’ve watched a relationship (or five) go all fizzly and fadey before you even get a proper chance. Maybe your long distance relationship has been long distance a lot longer than you’ve wanted it to be. Maybe you’ve survived abuse. Maybe you’ve got a developmental disability or some health problems. Maybe you’ve gone months without income. Maybe you’re earning minimum wage part time when your car suddenly needs $2500 in repairs. Maybe you’ve been rejected or betrayed by close friends. Maybe you’ve had falling outs with family.
Me too.
Maybe you’re going through a wicked combination of the above RIGHT NOW.
Me too.
And maybe you’re one of the happiest people anyone could ever meet.
I certainly am.
And if that seems insane to you, you’ve probably missed the secret of adversity that’s told in every word written by my friend Paul. So I’m going to tell you now.
- Your life is not about you. This realization may suck at first, until you realize… it TOTALLY LETS YOU OFF THE HOOK! (I mean, yay!) See, you don’t have to freak out when your plans go awry; all you have to do is recognize that God has something else in mind, at least for the time being. You may not understand it. If you don’t, ask Him. A lot of the time that works for me. But even if He doesn’t tell you, you’re still going to be okay. Some His reasons will hit you later, and that will be the perfect time for it. Other things with God are simply… well, BEYOND you. But that’s not cause for alarm either; it’s just part of the fun of the matchless mystery that is the infinite God of universe.
- God is really, really, REALLY big. I mean, like HUGE. Like…bigger-than-the-universe big. Let me help you understand: picture yourself standing in a battlefield with a wooden sword. In front of you, there are several dragons; each is several stories tall. And you’re terrified. Now, behind this troop of dragons, there is what looks like a high, weathered, windowless wall that towers over all of them. This wall is like taller than the Sears Tower, okay. Except, when you look up, you realize it’s not a wall at all. It’s actually the rear toenail of MUCH bigger dragon, a dragon that’s reaching down to pluck up the teensy dragons that are opposing you. And you start to laugh. Because you suddenly see, there is nothing you could ever face – EVER – that can stand against God.
- God’s love for you is bigger than the universe too. God loves you. He does. Extravagantly and unconditionally. And not in a Selfish way either. He’s not loving you so you’ll love Him back (though He’d like it if you did). He’s not loving you so you’ll do something for Him; He loves you just as much at your worst moment as He does at your best. And He will NEVER decide to stop loving you; it’s simply not in His nature to cease to love. It’s true. That unbeatable, mysterious, scary-big Creature I mentioned before actually has your best interests at heart in everything that He does. And because no force on the universe can stand against His interests, your security is in a pretty good place, don’t you think?
- His thoughts and ways are “higher” than yours. I know it doesn’t always seem like your life is working out for the best, but God is a lot smarter (and wiser) than you. This is a Creature that concurrently occupies every point in the universe at every moment in eternity. He never misses a thing that happens, and more importantly, He never misses why. He can be trusted, unilaterally, not only with His motives, but with His judgment. He will never do the wrong thing, and He will never tell you to do it either. That’s something you can rest in, something you can LIVE in.
- This is the secret God wants you to know about adversity. A lot of time, when God is involved, you don’t triumph in spite of it, but BECAUSE of it. I can’t tell you why everything happens, but I trust God’s greater plan. And I know that what my friend Paul wrote wouldn’t encourage me if his life had been daisies in the sunshine every day. But He learned the secret: you can carry the Light inside of you, and you will trust Him always as long as you remember He’s there. Sometimes when night falls you just have to blink into all the darkness you see and trust the Light is bigger. Because I’m telling: it is. SO MUCH BIGGER.
Raelee May Carpenter is an ordinary person, a Christian, and an author of contemporary fiction, inspirational essays, and modern mythology. Raelee’s work is passionate, descriptive and just a little edgy. Her three lifelong passions are faith, people, and words. She’s a tone-deaf music fan and “Mumma” to a young-at-heart, rescued Beagle mix. Her favorite thing to write about is Grace. She self-published two novels and contributed to Discovery True: the #NoMoreShame Project Anthology. Her literary romantic suspense novel (yes, seriously!) Liberation Song is due out in May from eLectio Publishing.
You can find more about her, including free samples of her work at: