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WHAT TO REMEMBER WHEN YOU'RE HAVING A BAD HAIR DAYDr.

James MerrittRomans 8:288-8-99   INTRODUCTION  1.

I read a story once about a man that was walking along a mountain road, and he saw an Indian lying in the middle of the road with his ear pressed to the ground.

As he got close to the Indian, he heard this Indian talking in broken English.

2.

He leaned over to hear what he was saying, and the Indian was mumbling these words:  "Truck, Chevy truck, Chevy pick-up truck, large tires, man driving, German Shepherd in front seat, loaded with firewood, California license plate, UBH123."

3.

Well, to say the least, this man was astounded.

He looked at that Indian and said, "That is unbelievable.

You mean you can tell all of that just by listening to the ground?"

The Indian said, "No, truck ran over me thirty minutes ago."

4.

Now when you think about it, life is a lot like that.

We don't always see what is coming, and when it does, sometimes it runs right over us.

What is even worse is that no matter how hard you try, you can't keep from having a bad hair day.

You can plan, scheme, prepare, do all you know to do to keep from having those days, but they are going to come just the same.

5.

Did you hear about the train that was going through a town, but it was not scheduled to stop?

There was a very short passenger on that train who wanted to get off, because if he did not he would have to pay $100 for a taxi to bring him back to the town.

6.

Well, the man sitting in the seat next to him had a brilliant idea.

He said, "Look, the train always slows down to pick up a mailbag.

When it slows down I'll hold you out the window.

When I drop you, you start running so you won't fall on your face; and simply run to a stop."

7.

Well, the train did slow down, and the man took his little friend, put him out the window and dropped him.

The man was running along the platform waving at him, thanking him for his help.

8.

About that time, a man seated in the next car saw the little man running on the platform, reached out, grabbed him, pulled him in through the window, and said, "This is your lucky day, you almost missed the train!" 9.

Face up to it.

Life is filled with bad hair days, even bad hair months, or bad hair years.

But there is a truth in the Bible for God's children that we need to remember, and it is one of the most well known and most quoted verses in the Bible, which is the text for our message--Romans 8:28.

10.

In this verse, which is short on words but long on wisdom, God gives us three truths to remember when you are having a bad hair day.

Now these three words are promise, providence, and purpose.

I.

Remember God's Promise To You 1.

Now there are three words that are extremely important in understanding and appreciating what this verse really says.

The first word is the word "we."

Paul says, "And we know that all things work together for good."

Now, who is the "we?"

Well, "we" are the ones who "love God" and who are "called."

2.

There are only two types of people in this world.

Those who love God, and those who don't.

Not everyone who says they love God, truly loves God.

Jesus said in Jn. 14:21, "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me."

In other words, people who truly love God don't just say it, they show it.

3.

But the "we" are also the ones who are "called."

That is, those who love God are the ones whom God has called to be a part of his family, and who have responded to that call by surrendering to Jesus Christ and becoming a child of God.

Never forget that God's promises are for God's children.

4.

You see, not everybody can say, "Don't worry, everything will work out."

Because everything does not work out for everybody.

Everything only works out for God's children.

You may be sitting there thinking "Well, I'm not a child of God, and everything is working out for me."

I submit to you that ultimately if you die, and spend eternity without God, things really didn't work out for you.

5.

Now the second word is "know."

Paul says "and we know that all things work together for good."

There are a lot of things about God, the Bible, and life, we don't know.

Paul tells us in v.26 we don't always know how to pray.

We don't know what Jesus looks like.

We don't know exactly when He is coming back.

As a matter of fact, we don't even know what is going to happen in the next five minutes.

6.

It is dishonest to claim you don't know what you do know.

It is foolish to claim that you do know what you don't know.

But no one should hesitate to claim to know what they do know, and this is one thing you can know.

7.

You may not always like what God is doing in your life, and you may not always understand what God is doing in your life.

But you can know that God is involved in your life 24-7 making all things work together for your good.

8.

That leads to the third word "all."

"We know that all things work together for good."

Now if Paul had used the word "few" or the word "some" or the word "most" we would not have batted an eye.

But he said, "All things work together for good..."   9.

Now you think about that.

This verse did not say that God works all things out for our good most of the time, nor does it say that God works most things out for our good all of the time.

It says God works all things out together for our good all of the time.

10.

It doesn't say that we "see that all things work together for good."

But you can know it whether you can see it or not.

Just because you can't see it doesn't mean he can't see it.

Never doubt in the dark what God has told you in the light.

But the question remains "How can this really be true?"

II.

Remember God's Providence Over You 1.

Behind every promise of God is the providence of God.

Some of the oldest and best manuscripts have the verse reading this way:  "God works all things together for good."

Whether or not that reading is accurate, it certainly is true.

2.

Do you know what the word providence means?

It comes from two words: the word pro meaning "before," and the word video meaning, "to see."

Providence simply means to see beforehand and to provide for what is seen.

Do you hear that word "provide" in the word providence?

The providence of God simply means that God sees every event before it occurs, and provides for that event and makes sure that it fits into His plan for your life.

3.

Did you know that there are no accidents in the life of a child of God, just appointments?

So often disappointments are really "His appointments."

So many times what we think is a rock of disappointment, turns out to be a boulder of blessing.

4.

I am reminded of the story of a man who was shipwrecked on an uninhabited island.

He managed to get a few meager belongings together that had washed up on shore after the shipwreck, and built a little hut to protect those things and himself from the sun and the rain and the wind.

For weeks the only thing he had for company was the hot sun, the cold rain, and dark nights.

He prayed every day that a ship would come, but nothing came.

5.

Then late one evening he went out to look for food, and he noticed across the island a cloud of smoke rising from where his hut was.

He ran back terrified, to find that his little hut was going up in flames.

His campfire had caught fire to the hut and not only burned up the hut, but what few possessions he had were all gone.

6.

He went to sleep that night crying out to God, asking him "Why has this happened to me?

Why did you let the tent burn?

Why did you even cause me to lose everything that I had?" 7.

Well, early the next morning he awoke to find a ship anchored off the island, the rescue he had been praying for all the weeks there.

Still trying to believe his eyes, he heard footsteps and turned around, and there were some men from that ship who had come to rescue him.