What should our attitude be when we face all these things?
Romans 8:28 says, "All things work together for good to those who love God." In other words, when God works, it is possible for us to receive the good, and it is also possible for us not to receive the good. This is quite related to our attitude. Our attitude even determines how soon we will receive the good. If our attitude is right, we will receive the good immediately. If we love God, everything that is of God will work for our good. If a man claims that he has no choice of his own, that he asks nothing for himself, and that he only wants everything that God gives to him, he should have only one desire in his heart—to love God. If he loves the Lord in his heart, all of the things around him will work together in love and for his good, no matter how confusing they may seem.
When something happens to us and we do not have the love of God within us, when we crave and seek things for ourselves, or when we pursue private interests apart from God, the good that God has reserved for us will not come. We are very good at complaining, struggling, murmuring, and groaning about many things. Brothers and sisters, please bear in mind that although all things do work together for good, we will not receive the good immediately if our hearts do not love God. Many of God’s children have indeed encountered many problems, but they have not received any good. They experience much discipline, and God has arranged many things around them, but these things do not result in any riches on their part. The only reason for this poverty is that they have other goals besides God. Their hearts are not pliable towards God. They do not feel God’s love; neither do they love God. They have a wrong attitude. As a result, they may have received many dealings, yet nothing remains in their spirit.
May God be merciful to us that we learn to love Him from our hearts as soon as we become Christians. Being short in knowledge does not mean much, because the way to know God lies in love, not in knowledge. If a man loves God, he will know God even though he may lack knowledge. However, if he knows much but does not love God in his heart, all of his knowledge will not help him to know God. There is a good line in one hymn: "To bring thee to thy God,/Love takes the shortest route" (Hymns, #477). If a man loves God, whatever he encounters will turn out to his good.
Our heart must love God, and we must learn to know His hand and humble ourselves under it. If we do not see His hand, our eyes will be distracted by men. We will feel that others are wrong or have betrayed us. We will feel that our brothers, sisters, siblings, parents, and friends are all wrong. As we condemn everyone, we fall into disappointment and disillusion ourselves, and nothing works to our good. When we say that the brothers and sisters in the church are all wrong and that nothing is right and everything is wrong, we are gaining nothing for ourselves except anger and criticism. If we remember the Lord Jesus’ word, that "not one of them will fall to the earth apart from your Father" (Matt. 10:29), and if we realize that everything is of God, we will humble ourselves under His hand and receive the good.
Psalm 39:9 says, "I was dumb; I did not open my mouth; /For You have done this." This is the attitude of one who obeys God. Because God has done it and because God has allowed it to come upon us for our good, we humble ourselves and say nothing. We will not say, "Why did that happen to others, and why is this happening to me?" When we love God and know His hand, we will not open our mouth. In this way we will witness God’s breaking and constituting work in us.
Some may ask, "Should we accept everything from Satan’s hand too?" The basic principle is that we will take whatever God allows to come upon us. As for attacks from Satan, we have to resist.
(New Believers Series: Discipline of the Holy Spirit, The #20, Chapter 1, by Watchman Nee)