I (Lauren) spent this morning reading the book Suffering is Never for Nothing by Elisabeth Elliott for class, very timely. At the beginning of the book, she defines suffering as “wanting what you do not have or having what you do not want.” Her definition of suffering intends to cover everything from the most trivial day to day inconveniences to life-changing devastation. Almost everyone is suffering currently. As a collective, we have what we do not want, a pandemic, and many of us are wanting what we do not have, spending time with those we love, health, or certainty of what the future holds. Many people have encountered losses, for some, like me, it’s a semester on campus with friends, for others, their job, and others, unfortunately, loved ones. The world feels like it’s in chaos in many ways. I think that it’s really easy for Christians to hear “God has a plan” and take it like it’s any other cliché, but it should be one of the most reassuring things for a Christian to hear! There is never a moment when God is not in control. No matter what is going on around us, he will always be there, the unchanging, faithful, loving, holy Lord of all creation will always be here for us. Still, he also uses our suffering for his purposes. We must look beyond our pain to the hope that we can have for the future in Christ. He does have a plan that can give us hope for the future, one that He laid out before the beginning of time, a grand, glorious plan. Praise be to God that he is in control of this world. God is always working and in control, and “you are not adrift in a sea of chaos.”