I am learning that mature faith, which encompasses both simple faith and fidelity, works the opposite of paranoia. It reassembles all the events of life around trust in a loving God. When good things happen, I accept them as gifts from God, worthy of thanksgiving. When bad things happen, I do not take them as necessarily sent by God — I see evidence in the Bible to the contrary — and I find in them no reason to divorce God. Rather, I trust that God can use even those bad things for my benefit.
