I say that a lot to myself.
We have seen, over and over for 11 years, any time our son Owen goes through any type of health treatment that ultimately benefits him, his initial reaction is rough. He may be more hyperactive, screaming, up all night, easily irritated, crying – any combination of these OR even all of the above. He had a treatment last week, actually, so it has been a hard few days. But I keep saying, “It always gets worse before it gets better.”
Sometimes I say it with conviction. Sometimes I am trying to talk myself into it. Sometimes I am reminding myself as if I forgot (again).
And days like today, I have to remind myself that, for whatever reason, it seems God likes to work like that. Things are gonna get worse before they get better.
Like Israel, right? God promises freedom, the land promised to Abraham, the fulfillment of a promise. But they were slaves in Egypt. Before they marched out (on Pharaoh’s dime), their slave labor went from horrible to worse. “Keep making bricks but gather your own straw!” (Exodus 5). Things are gonna get worse before they get better.
Or like Jesus. He came to save us. Glory to God, Exaltation to Christ, Salvation for His people. But Hebrews 12:2 says, yes, the joy was set before Christ, yes, He is seated at the right hand of God, but before that, He had to endure the cross. Things are gonna get worse before they get better.
Or like the whole book of Revelation, right? Jesus comes back and sets up His glorious kingdom on earth, according to Revelation 20. And Revelation 21 says He is making a new heaven and a new earth! What is better than that? But, Revelation 6-19 tells us of God’s wrath being poured out on the earth! Seals, trumpets, bowls, truly terrifying events describing the end of the age as God's judgment is being poured out on a sinful world. Showing us again that things are gonna get worse before they get better.
So maybe the good news you were expecting from the doctor actually ended up being another dose of bad news.
Maybe that relationship you have been praying for took a turn for the worse.
Maybe the marriage you have been trying to save took a huge step backwards.
Maybe the job you applied for fell through.
Maybe today, like me, you are a little discouraged and more than a little disappointed.
Maybe you should turn your eyes to God, look at His Word and His track record, and say it with me:
Things are gonna get worse before they get better.
Pastor Jeff
-better days ahead!