When we take our first breath, we begin a time of grace. For nine months we’ve been safely tucked in our mom’s womb, protected by her body and sheltered from the ugliness of the world. When we emerge from the boundaries of that safety, we experience the first pangs of sin – our little lungs fill with air and our first response is to scream.

God tells us that we are sinful by nature. It was passed onto us by the first humans and will continue to be this way until we die.

Does God want us to experience suffering so that heaven will look so much better? Does He enjoy watching us squirm when we fail in business or lose all our worldly goods? Does He sit up on His throne and simply watch as His creatures battle serious illness, domestic violence, broken marriages, greed, evil or disappointment?

God can change use bad in our lives for our good and the good of others. For those who put their trust in Him completely, He’s promised His presence and love. He will never let us down, even though the world may crumble around us.

Does that mean we can go through all pain and sorrow without feeling anything? We still experience anxiety, pain, difficulty understanding, depression, hopelessness. We still feel persecuted, downtrodden, lost. God uses even our most difficult situations to bring good. Maybe our situation can help another person deal with their struggle or demonstrate what faith can do.

Each footprint we leave on this planet can be filled with hope or determined by negativity. The choice should be simple, but how can our minds understand when someone says God is fine tuning you and making you ready for heaven.

As Job said when he struggled with his lot in life, “Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” We have been given a time of grace from God – it’s called a lifetime – how we choose to spend it is really up to us. Do we allow the pain of this life to overtake us or do we trust in God to be with us every step of the way?