by Desiree Bustamante

Our life in Christ is full of surprises.

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“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.”
Romans 8:28 New Living Translation

Today marks the anniversary observation of Reformation Day. When Martin Luther nailed the 95 theses to the Wittenburg door, he never expected that an entire movement would begin in his name. He merely wanted everyone to know that He had found peace in His soul through Scripture pointing to faith and God’s grace, something not taught in the church at that time.

When he protested the church’s selling of indulgences for the forgiveness of sins, his proclamation calling for reformation of the church drew a lot of public debate. He spent many years defending his beliefs and was eventually excommunicated from the Catholic Church for refusing to renounce them.

I’m sure that Luther was not expecting any of the events that happened throughout his life. If he had known, we may not be attending the same kind of church we attend, because the Reformation might never have happened.

God calls us to live our lives in Him one day at a time, looking to Him for His plan and guidance for the paths He has chosen for us. We can’t foresee what He will ask us to do, but we do know He will be by our side as we obey Him. He asks us to be faithful to Him, to honor Him, to love and forgive just as He is faithful, loves and forgives us. Our life’s pursuit in faithfully carrying out His plan may not lead to anything close to world-wide church reformation, but His will for us is perfect and will always impact God’s kingdom for good, perhaps leading someone to salvation in Christ, the best result of all.

Our future won’t be what we expected. It will be better than we hoped for when we reach our eternity with Jesus.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado