All Things Work for Good
By Patricia Chadwick
www.historyswomen.com
Romans 8:28 (NLT)
And we know that God causes everything to work together for the
good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose
for them.
What does New Years Day mean to you? To me, it signifies new beginnings.
No matter how the past year - or several years - has gone we can
always start over. When we look back over the years, we can often
see how God has used the good and the bad to mold us into the
people we are today.
Has the past year been a good year for you? Have you prospered
in your work? Has your family remained healthy? Thank God for
His goodness.
Has the past year been less than perfect for you? Have you been
plagued with financial worries, ill-health, or tragedy? Don't
give up hope. God is the God of miracles and He makes all things
beautiful in His time. He promises to work everything out for
your ultimate good - even if you can't see it right now.
No one had a more tragic, yet happy life than Elizabeth Barrett
Browning, an English Poet who lived from 1800 - 1861. Elizabeth
was born in London and was a delicate child from infancy. She
was naturally quiet and loved being alone. At fifteen she sustained
an injury of the spine which further weakened her physically.
Being almost bed-ridden, she gave herself to study and began to
write. She could see little of the world and so she found or made
a world of her own.
In 1839 she burst a blood vessel of the lungs and had to move
to a milder climate. Soon afterwards her favorite brother, with
two other young men, was drowned while sailing. These physical
and mental shocks so weakened her that for years she lived in
a darkened room, visited only by her family and a few intimate
friends. Yet God saw her through these dark times and brought
her out of her trials with a sweet resignation that didn't question
her Master's goodness and love. It was through these dark days
that her hand produced works that made the world marvel.
It was at this time that her life began to change. Robert Browning
had already won for himself a name. He had learned to love the
invalid poetess through her works and sought her hand in marriage,
to the amazement of her family and friends. He believed that she
need not be an invalid all her life; love could win her to health
she had never known.
They were married and spent four years in France and Italy.
When they returned to England, Elizabeth was a new creature. Hope,
love, and the Italian climate had wrought marvels. Theirs was
as perfect a union as the world had ever seen. Each had poetic
brilliance and power. Each had a marked individuality. Each was
a compliment of the other.
Elizabeth Browning possessed the unusual combination of a sharp
mind and thoroughly tender heart. She could treat social problems
in a masterly way and at the same time she could set forth the
most tender, deepest sentiments of a woman's heart.
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For more information on Elizabeth Barrett Browning visit:
http://www.historyswomen.com/browning.html
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Patricia Chadwick is a freelance writer and creator of two websites,
www.historyswomen.com and www.parentsandteens.com Visit her sites
and sign up for her FREE weekly newsletters.
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