Q: Why is it that some people seem to lead charmed lives? They have perfect looks, perfect health, lots of natural abilities and lots of friends--everything--while other people seem to have no end of deficiencies and problems?

On the surface things often don't seem fair or equal, but a lot goes on in every person's life that is unseen by others. In the wise words of King Solomon in the Bible, "To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under Heaven" (Ecclesiastes 3:1). Not everyone goes through the same rough spots or at the same time, but everyone has their share eventually.

No life is complete without a touch of suffering, sadness, and difficulty. God allows each person to experience some sort of difficulty because He wants each to learn to overcome. He wants us to experience coming to the end of ourselves, and then turning to Him and finding His power. It takes desperation to bring that about, and often that desperation is the result of great difficulty. So, while you may look at someone else and think they have it so easy, you can be assured that they have troubles too, or will yet.

It's also important to remember that God often sees things quite differently than we do. We consider a person blessed if they have a more carefree or obviously successful life with fewer problems, illnesses, and so on. But God's blessings often come disguised as problems. He would rather we have a full life than an easy life. He wants our lives to be rich in faith, depth of spirit, understanding, self-sacrificial love, inner strength, and tenderheartedness. All of these treasures of spirit come from an intimate relationship with Him, and often these come by way of trials, suffering, or surviving great difficulties.

If you could "have it all" at the cost of God's greater blessings, would you want that?