Today our new cat found a way to escape the house, and we do not know if she will find her way back. I am reeling with regret and guilt, as it was I who left the door open. But I remembered something important, as I always do.

During a visit to a counsellor 30 years ago, he taught me a truth that has served me well over the years. We think our feelings are instant, but there is always a thought that triggers a feeling. And we can choose how we want to think about something. This is the sequence:

A → B → C
Something happens → We think about it → We feel about it

Runners know this sequence well.

Let’s take an example.

(A) Something bad happens, say I get injured during a race and cannot complete it.
(B) I may think to myself: “This is it. I will not be able to run again for a long time. It is probably the end of my running. I am going to lose fitness, gain weight, and struggle to get back.”
(C) How will I feel if I think that way? Hopeless. Depressed. Devastated.

Now let’s change (B), what we think about it. Let’s choose to think:
“God is good, and He allowed this injury to happen to me. He must have a good reason for it. I have overcome injuries in the past, and I know other runners who have recovered from this type of injury. It may take time, but I will run again. I may even come back stronger.”

Then (C) may look something like this:
“I am disappointed, but thankful and hopeful.”

How you choose to think makes all the difference, especially when running is more than just exercise.

As a follower of Jesus, there is one verse in particular that helps me here, Romans 8:28.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

That is good news, don’t you think? He works for my good. He is not against me, but for me. In all things, there is the ultimate outcome of good for me, one who loves Him and has been called by Him.

So today…

  • I have a persistent hamstring injury. It is working for my good, even if it keeps me from running fast or racing right now.
  • Our cat ran away. It will be for good. (But please, bring her back.)
  • We may not get the house we wanted. God knows what is good for us better than we do.
  • We lost a big project. Thank You, God, for providing despite that loss.
  • No one is buying my book. I did not write it for anyone other than Him, my Friend.

It is hard. Some things cannot be thought right that easily. Some things need to be grieved. Loss is never easy, especially when it feels like a part of who we are has been taken away.

There are situations such as the death of someone we love, a terminal disease, betrayal by someone close to us, and many others that must be grieved. But we do not grieve like those who have no hope (see 1 Thessalonians 4:13–14).

Even in these circumstances, hope and trust in the goodness of God have the last word.