Temporary....

2 Corinthians 4:17-18
For our present troubles are small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don't look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.(NLT)

What about the tragic changes that God permits? When children are abused or the sick lose thier dignity? What about the faithful spouse who holds on to the end only to come to the end.....divorce? Do such moments serve a purpose? They do if we see them from an eternal perspective. What makes no sense in this life will make perfect sense in the next. I have proof: you.....in the womb.

Some prenatal features went unused before birth. You grew a nose but didn't breathe. Eyes developed, but could you see? Your tongue, toenails, and crop of hair served no function in your mother's belly. But aren't you glad you have them now? Some of you have some of your hair anyway.....

Certain chapters in this life seem so unnecessary. Holocausts, martyrdom, monsoons, tornadoes, divorce, disease. If we assume this world exists just for this life and happiness, these atrocities don't follow our assumptions. They are not fun and it does not provide happiness. But what if this earth is the womb? Might these challenges, severe as they may be, serve to prepare us, equip us for the world to come?

Remember, we look through a glass dimly....it's a little foggy and unclear right now. But one day we will look into the beautiful face of Jesus Himself and it will all become perfectly clear....and it will be beautiful.