By Jeanette Hanscome

When my attorney emerged from the courtroom, I expected her to tell me that my painful, unwanted divorce process was finally over. Instead she said, “The judge wants you and your husband to pursue bankruptcy.” She explained that bankruptcy would release me from dividing a mountain of debt that I couldn’t afford, most of which I hadn’t caused.

All I heard was that ugly word—bankruptcy.

Isn’t being divorced enough, God? 

I had no choice but to follow my attorney’s advice and trust that God had a plan. I made a conscious effort to thank him in advance, believing that he would bring good out of this. A year later, I recognized how he used the bankruptcy to provide a fresh start, deepening and strengthening my faith as I headed into a future filled with unknowns.

Standing Strong

When the prophet Habakkuk received disastrous news about what lay ahead for Israel, he cried out to God. In the opening verses of Habakkuk 2, we see him steadying his heart and preparing to record the answer to his pleas and questions. God was about to speak, and he was ready to
listen.

By chapter 3 verse 17, even after accepting a troubling revelation, Habakkuk had made up his mind to trust his faithful, righteous God and to “be joyful in God my Savior.” Habakkuk knew where his strength resided—in the God who would equip him to someday “tread on the heights.”

Rejoicing When Crushed

How do we respond when a trial drags on or an already crushing ordeal is compounded by more bad news? As humans who just want the pain to stop, we cry and question.

Once we have poured it all out before our Father, hopefully we can reach a place where we’re ready to listen and trust the one who knows what he is doing. Then we can let him take what we would have been crazy to sign up for and use it to mold us into who he created us to be.

Jeanette Hanscome is the author of many articles and four books, including Running with Roselle, cowritten with 9/11 survivor Michael Hingson, who is blind. She lives in the Bay Area and has two amazing sons.