We all want to be happy. And if God is a good God, he wants us to be happy too, right? Why, then, does Jesus say bizarre things like, “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” and “Blessed are those who mourn”? And why does Paul say that “God chose the foolish [and the weak and the lowly] things of the world”? That makes no sense! In fact, that’s exactly right. It doesn’t make sense…

Sometimes life doesn’t go the way you’d like it to. In fact, sometimes it downright stinks. Where’s God in these moments, and why does it seem like he doesn’t care? Could it be that God is actually present in our pain? Could it be that He could actually use adversity for good?