He could have written the story very differently.
I believe that with all my heart.
Any one of a thousand details could have altered the course. We could be celebrating this Thanksgiving week with Marissa healed and well. We could be proclaiming God’s goodness in the victory of successful treatment and answered prayer.
That was the story we longed for and the one we thought would bring Him the most glory.
That is how I would have written the story.
God’s sovereignty is perhaps the most confusing of all of His attributes. We rest in it, but we never fully understand it. We seek peace in it, but we feel vulnerable when suffering.
We believe, but we wonder.
It is the promise of His goodness that comforts us.
God is good. What He does is good. And somehow through His sovereign, guiding hand, He brings all suffering to a place of goodness.
It is the highlight of the story. It is the emotional ending, the satisfying sigh. It is the drama and the climax and the happy conclusion.
It is there on every page if we look for it.
I am looking for it. I am remembering. I am letting the remembrance of God’s goodness surround me.
I am remembering praise. For His sheltering wings. For abundant help in the day of trouble. For grace in every moment. For mercy and salvation. For the keeping power of Christ.
I am remembering all of you. Your prayers that carried us and your many kindnesses that encouraged us.
I am remembering the gifts He has given–shelter and abundant provision. My people. Warmth and joy. Wealth of soul. Peace and beauty.
I am remembering the goodness in Marissa’s story. I remember that she is right now alive. Safe. Kept. Forever healed.
I am remembering the goodness of the Author. I am trusting Him to make everything right, to straighten all the paths. I am anxiously waiting for the sequel.
It will be filled with good lines, and I trust Him with the story.
This I know–the ending will be good because of who He is.
The ending will be glorious.
O LORD, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will give thanks to Your name; for You have worked wonders, plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness. Isaiah 25:1
O, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! Psalm 34:8
Tracing His Goodness 
Even so,Lord Jesus, quickly come!
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Colleen, thank you for these beautifully expressed thoughts! I especially appreciate them because for the past several weeks, I have embarked upon reading through the Bible with a 90 day chronological plan in the ESV. I have never before undertaken such an intense reading program and this is the first time in the ESV. It has been such an incredible blessing, most of all because it has allowed me to see how longsuffering, gracious, and GOOD the Lord is! I have been dumbfounded at the determined rebellion of His chosen people over hundreds and hundreds of years, and how He sent His prophets to warn and entreat. Now I have finished Lamentations and am working through Ezekiel, and my heart is heavy for the well-deserved destruction of Jerusalem. And then to read how He longs to gather, and WILL gather His people to Himself again…..! To get an overview of how all-powerful and sovereign our dear Lord is, has been staggering and thrilling. I can hardly sing a hymn of praise during the song service at church without breaking into tears. He is so good and so wonderful! I really appreciated reading this latest essay of yours! All of the essays have been so instructive and poignant, but this last one is incredibly lovely!
Deborah Lake
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I read with interest your post this holiday season. i read it after posting on Marlita’s Caringbridge site. We reflect on God’s goodness and blessing as well. We are walking this preparation ground on the path to heaven. We have so much for which to be thankful and grateful most of all the provision to be His child. Yes, we don’t understand why our daughters story had to be written as it was. But we trust, when trust might be the hardest thing to do. Blessings to you as you, fellow travelers as you too travel this valley of greif. It is deep and hard, but we follow the Shepherd.
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