Good and Hard

Some people I know are walking through incredibly hard seasons of life right now. I imagine you know others you would describe this way too — or perhaps it is you.
Disease. Death. Disappointment. These things happen to "good" people, people we may think don't deserve such heart-wrenching circumstances. In moments like these, it is easy to wonder: Where is God? Why them? Or even, Why me?
Maybe, like me, you have caught yourself thinking, Those good people don't deserve those hard circumstances. We often think of "good" and "hard" as opposites. Everything in life is either good or hard. Our minds like to summarize our day, our week, or even an entire season using one of those two words.
This is often what it looks like for me.
A "good" season is filled mostly with ease. Things I hoped would happen actually happen. No one cancels on me. My schedule isn't interrupted. What I planned for dinner turns out delicious, and no one complains! I think you get the idea. Life feels comfortable.
A "hard" season, on the other hand, feels like a struggle from beginning to end. Things take longer than I expected. People cancel. My plans are constantly interrupted. And dinner? Whoops... was I supposed to have that ready?
Most of these examples are rather trivial, but they are the kinds of things that fill our ordinary days. I imagine you can relate.
It is easy to place our days into the rigid categories of "good" or "hard." But when we do — and I say this without judgment because I do it often — we forget the One who is sovereign over every one of our days, even the ordinary, mundane moments.
If we truly believe that God is our Creator, our Sovereign, and our Saviour, then our evaluation of our days begins to change.
Oswald Chambers once said, "What we believe about God determines everything about us." How true that is.
It all comes down to what I am choosing to focus on. When I remember who God is, what He has done for me, and who I once was — a sinner desperately in need of grace — my perspective shifts. I realize that every day and every breath I am given is an undeserved gift.
Jesus told Martha that "one thing is necessary" (Luke 10:38–42). I find I need that reminder often.
When I allow the constantly changing circumstances of life—things over which I have little or no control—to determine my emotions and responses, life will almost always feel hard. But Jesus offers a better way, a way that leads to peace even when the waves are high.
When I fix my eyes on Him, remembering His goodness, His faithfulness, and His steadfast love, I find solid ground beneath my feet. As I build my life upon the Rock, I remain secure, even when the storms come (Matthew 7:24–27).
Over the past several months, God has gently been showing me something I desperately needed to learn: good and hard are not opposites. They often exist together.
People may cancel, and my day is still good because my God is with me. In His sovereign wisdom, He knew that cancelled appointment before I ever wrote it on my calendar.
Someone may forget to do what they promised — or I may fail to keep a promise myself — and yet I remain deeply loved by my Saviour, the Lover of my soul.
Someone I love dearly may die suddenly, and yet there is still hope.
Someone I care about may receive a dreaded diagnosis, and yet I know God will faithfully sustain them through every step of the journey.
For the past several months, I have been meditating on Daniel 11:32b: "The people who know their God will stand firm and take action." (ESV)
The word know means far more than simply knowing facts about God or affirming that He exists. It speaks of knowing Him through experience.
How do we come to know God this way? Through His written Word, where He reveals the beauty and depth of His character, and through walking with Him day after day.
When we know who our God is, we find a confidence and courage that can sustain us when life is hard — not because life becomes easy, but because we know the One who is good.
When our minds are fixed on Him, our courage does not come from everything going our way. It comes from the unchanging truth that our God is with us, and He never fails (Isaiah 43:1-7).
God, in His grace, is always patiently teaching me. Learning that "good" and "hard" can coexist has filled me with unexpected joy and hope.
No matter how hard life may seem today, I know the One who is good is still the One who is in control.
And one day, our Good Shepherd will return. He will make all things new (Revelation 21:5). Every tear will be wiped away. Every sorrow will end. Every wrong will be made right.
And He shall reign forever.