While everything seemed negative, Paul chose to see the positive. Paul was looking not at it but through it. He was seeing the image God wanted him to see that others couldn’t. That’s why, as he continued the letter, he wrote, “The Lord is near” (Phil. 4:5) and, “Do not be anxious about anything” (v. 6) and, “The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ
