Forrest Gump is one of the most beloved and critically acclaimed movies of all time. It has won six Academy Awards and dozens of others in the thirty-one years since its release. The movie chronicles the unexpected life of Forrest as he plays a part in significant events throughout history. It is about many things, but at its core, the movie is a love story between Forrest and Jenny. This recurring theme makes the ending (spoiler alert!) even sadder: Jenny dies and leaves Forrest alone to raise their son.

In what must be one of the most emotional scenes in movie history, Forrest is standing next to Jenny’s grave when he says, “I don’t know if we have a destiny or if we’re all just floating around all accidental-like.” He concludes that “maybe it’s both.” I’m sorry, Forrest, but that’s impossible. Either we do have a purpose here or we don’t. Graciously for us all, God makes it clear that we do have a purpose, and it is found in him.

Behind everything God does, there is a greater plan. This is especially true when we cannot see the “why.” Through everything he orchestrates and allows to happen, God is at work in ways we cannot fathom. John Piper said that “God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of three of them.” We cannot grasp even a glimmer of all God is doing amid our circumstances, yet he wants us to trust him through it.

Whatever it is you are going through, it may seem like your plan for the situation is best. You’ve got it figured out. You know what God should be doing. You know that if he would just listen to you, then everything and everyone would be much better off. However, Proverbs 14:12 reminds us that “there is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” Any plans we make for the future are like a vapor; they’re temporary (Jas. 4:14). Unlike God, we do not have eternity in view, nor do we have the whole of humanity in our sights. God’s ways are not ours—in fact, his are “higher” than ours (Isa. 55:8–9)—and we must trust that they are always best.

Hearing the Sounds

I can think of a few orchestras I have seen in person, and I get chills each time they play. Fifty or more musicians playing fifteen or more different instruments come together to create a breathtaking performance. Oftentimes, individual musicians are playing different notes that allow for a fuller, harmonized sound. It’s awe-inspiring and goosebump-inducing as each unique person and instrument come together to create this cohesive symphony of praise unto God.

The Lord is orchestrating the symphony of the universe, and he is simultaneously conducting each of our lives. We are bound together in harmony by love (Col. 3:14). It’s comforting to know that our trials are just one part of God’s great symphony, which is bigger than any one person or season of life. God is greater than we recognize, and he is working out far more than we can fathom. 

Take Joseph’s story in Genesis 37–50, for example. After twenty years of hardships, betrayal, abandonment, false accusations, and more, Joseph reached a place where he could recognize God’s sovereignty over his life. Amazingly, Joseph could then respond to his betraying brothers from God’s providential perspective, saying, “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today” (Gen. 50:20). God purposed each of those trials in Joseph’s life because he had plans for good—to save the budding nation of Israel, as well as other nations, from the famine—despite the evil intentions of those around Joseph.

God’s character is the same today (Heb. 13:8). He still works all things for good including any evil done against us (Rom. 8:28). He allows the circumstances in our lives to happen because he has a greater purpose for us and humanity at large that we cannot see in the moment. It may not be possible this side of Heaven, but one day we will be able to look back at each trial we endured and tell God, “I see what you did there. I hear how you resolved that sour note into a beautiful coda. If I were you, I wouldn’t have done it any other way.”

Embracing the Music

In college, I was an accounting major pursuing a CPA license. I had everything worked out and knew exactly what was going to happen, how much money I was going to make, and when I was going to retire to collect seashells. Halfway into this degree, God intervened and made it clear that the only way I could be satisfied vocationally was if I went into ministry full-time. My plans for my whole life were shaken, and the financial security that typically comes from an accounting job disappeared.

Over time, God has helped me discern a glimpse of his plan. I can see perhaps three of the 10,000 things he is doing in my life. Though it’s been challenging, I am learning to trust his path and, with the Spirit’s help, prioritize it because I know his ways are best. Now, I find myself regularly filled with joy that’s only possible through knowing I am following God’s design. I can embrace the beauty that arises when notes are in perfect harmony.

While I cannot begin to envision the fullness of God’s purpose, hindsight certainly helps. As with Joseph, God used my disappointments for his glory and my good, and he continues to work out his plans in mysterious yet perfect ways.

Ultimately, we can have confidence this is true through the glorious crescendo of Christ’s cross and empty tomb. His ultimate plan has always been to save broken humanity, and the cross and empty tomb are the proofs.

So, when circumstances do not match our expectations of what we feel God should do, remember that there is a greater purpose, and it is rooted in Jesus’s love. We can trust God, the great conductor, who is orchestrating a purposeful symphony of praise in each of our lives.