I spent Christmas Day with my dad at the hospital.  At times, I heard groans from other patients. When I did, I whispered a prayer for them.  This was a difficult time, but it had a purpose.  The psalmist wrote, “It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees”.  Difficult times help us to rely more on God.

When we face challenges, we can still find peace and hope.  Even in difficult times, we can trust in God’s ways because God is good, and we can trust that God is working out what is best for us and drawing us closer.  Like the psalmist, we can be assured of God’s goodness and say, “You have treated your servant well, Lord, according to your promise”.  Thanks be to God. 

Prayer: Dear God, help us to see your goodness even as we go through difficult times.  As Jesus taught us we pray, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.  Give us today our daily bread.  Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one”. Amen.