Maybe God is trying to tell us something!

By Presiding Elder Betty Holley, Contributing Writer

The big question on many of our minds, “Why did God allow the disappointing election results revealed on November 5, 2024?” Grappling mentally with this question, God led me to Romans 5:3-4, which states, “3 And not only that, but we[a] also boast in our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope.”

The Lord reminded me that we, as African Americans, are a people of “hope.” We have come up from the rough side of the mountain. We have come through the storms and the rain. We have had to endure all kinds of suffering and hardships to get to where we are now. Our ancestors had to suffer through a plethora of trials and tribulations, which enabled them to develop endurance. The endurance gained strengthened and built their character, which allowed them opportunities to make great strides down through history. If it had not been for the sufferings that our brothers and sisters had to endure, coming through slavery, which made them realize that there must be a better way, just think, where would we be today?

They were able to develop plans to maneuver their way out of slavery by singing Negro Spirituals, their code language, to prepare for their escape to freedom. Through it all, they developed a “hope” that allowed them to look deep into the future and prepare for our presence in this 21st Century.

Maybe God is trying to tell us something through various trials and tribulations. Unfortunately, many times, we fail to see how God wants us to use problems “all together for good” in our lives. We respond foolishly and resent problems rather than pausing to consider what spiritual benefit can be gleaned from the experience. We might need to begin looking at trials and tribulations in a more positive way. The God that we serve loves each of us. God would never do anything to hurt or harm us.

God uses situations/problems in our lives to “direct,” “inspect,” “correct,” “protect,” and “perfect us.” Perhaps God is making a point with these horrible election results to let us know that God has an intervention plan that will work in each of our lives. If we are to profit from God’s intervention plan, we must be willing to cooperate and listen to God as God gives direction, takes us through inspection, chastises us through correction, provides protection, and moves us closer to perfection through various challenges we may have to endure the next four years. We need God’s intervention to clear our minds, stabilize our souls, cure our unbelief, remove our doubts, humble our spirits, and renew our faith.

God uses problems in our lives to replace gloom with glory, rekindle the flicker into a flame, change pressure to peace, refresh the burden with a blessing, and restore the faith of the faltering. God uses problems in our lives to reveal God’s majesty and power, God’s sovereignty, God’s grace, and God’s mercy. If you are perplexed by the election results, allow God to speak through whatever challenges we must face. “We know that all things work together[a] for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.”