Mosquitos, mud, and not much else. A landscape littered with lugubrious and lonesome lagoons. Marshy banks at every turn, frequently submerged beneath murky seawater during high tide. A wasteland so barren that its eels and seabass envied the swamps of Louisiana. The most undesirable place on earth—and the least likely land to be transformed into a globally-known paradise: Venice, Italy. 

This eyesore became a sight to behold thanks to a handful of retreating Romans who believed that ruins could be redeemed. When barbarians pillaged the Roman Empire, many fled with only their lives, but they carried Rome with them—and more importantly, a vision for what could be. They essentially rebuilt Rome upon these deserted islands, building a floating masterpiece embellished with marble palaces, monumental towers, winding canals, and a romantic allure that has enchanted tourists for generations. Looking at Venice now, it is hard to fathom that one of the world’s greatest wonders arose from a desolate no-man’s-land. But it did because, while everyone else saw a barren wilderness, the builders saw Venice. 

According to the Scripture, the Lord is an all-wise and able architect who specializes in the same thing—He can see a Venice where there are valleys and vexations. Sometimes, life looks like a lonely lagoon when the tides of tribulation wash away your hopes and dreams, leaving you standing knee-deep in a marsh of misery. A troubled marriage, prodigal child, terminal diagnosis, or loss of a loved one can leave you staring at a wrecked landscape, tempting you to conclude, “Nothing good could ever come from this.” But God is so good that He can take what is not good and use it for the good of those whom He loves. This is why Paul promised, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (Rom. 8:28, KJV).

The Bible is replete with “Venices.” Joseph’s brothers saw him as a slave, but God saw the ruler of Egypt (Gen. 50:20). The women of Bethlehem saw a beleaguered Ruth, but God saw a woman whom He was writing into the ancestry of Christ (Ruth 4:18-21). The disciples saw a bloodied cross and a borrowed grave, but God saw an empty tomb and salvation for the world (Acts 2:23). The Lord sees things differently, and builds masterpieces from miseries (cf. Hab. 1:5).

Therefore, believers must wait upon the Lord and trust in His powerful providence (cf. Psalm 27:13-14; cf. Eccl. 3:11). Rome wasn’t built in a day, nor was it rebuilt overnight in Venice. And God’s providential plan progresses at His perfect pace as He lays one stone at a time. If you are sitting in a barren wilderness today, remember the Lord’s word to you:

“I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys. I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive. I will set in the desert the cypress, the plane and the pine together, that they may see and know, may consider and understand together, that the hand of the LORD has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created it” (Isa. 41:18-20).

 Where you see ruins, God sees redemption.

Brandon is the pastor of Bandana Baptist Church in Bandana, Kentucky, where he lives with his wife, Dakota, their much-prayed for son, Oliver, and their three dogs. Brandon and Dakota previously served as foster parents through Sunrise Children’s Services of Kentucky. Brandon is also a published author and his Bible Gleanings columns are featured in over sixteen publications throughout Kentucky, Illinois, Tennessee, and Indiana. He is also a devotional contributor for Kentucky Today, a news publication of the Kentucky Baptist Convention, and an editor at Reforming the Heart.