And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. – Romans 8:28

Earle Dickson was the cotton buyer for the Johnson and Johnson Company in the 1920s. He was frequently on the road, leaving his wife Josephine at home. She was apparently quite accident-prone, either cutting or burning herself almost daily. When at home, he would dress her wounds using the 3-inch-wide rolls of surgical tape and bandages that were available at the time. But this was not something Josephine could do for herself. One day, Earle had the idea to cut the roll of tape into inch-wide strips, put them on the kitchen counter, sticky side up, then add small squares of gauze in the middle of each one, leaving enough sticky tape on each end for Josephine to use in dressing her wounds on her own. He would later mention his idea to the company president, and Band-Aids came into being.

In his way, Earle made good out of a bad situation. Today’s verse shows that God does this regularly. While there will be adversity in the life of believers, God’s assurance is that—if you love Him and walk according to His plan for you—He will turn what can look like the worst of circumstances into something good. Only His power can sustain, protect, heal, and transform you. You can have confidence, knowing that “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6).

Pray, study, worship, and fellowship with other believers. Do the work He has given you to do. All will be well, according to His plans. Pray that judges across the United States will learn and found their administration of justice on the precepts of the Word of God.