God is good but life is hard

does that sound like a contradiction to you? At first glance it may seem like one. If God is good why do people suffer, why do we go through hard times? I can't really answer those questions except from what I know from the Bible:

14 When times are good, be happy;
but when times are bad, consider:
God has made the one
as well as the other.
(Ecclesiastes 7)

1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:

2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,

4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,

5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,

7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,

8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
(Ecclesiastes 3)

The most important thing is that God is always present, He never leaves me. Even when it feels like He's far away, He's right there.

13 For I am the LORD, your God,
who takes hold of your right hand
and says to you, Do not fear;
I will help you.
(Isaiah 41)

And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
(Matthew 28:20)

Knowing this is what gives me peace in the weirdest circumstances. I'm not saying this makes all my problems go away and I'm always happy... no. I'll still feel grief, sorrow, anger, disappointment as I go through rough experiences in life... but I will also feel this peace in the midst of all that. I have an inner joy that only comes from God and it is there also in the hard times.

Peace and joy from God. Doesn't make my problems go away but I know I'm not alone and that's what keeps me going. That's what makes my life amazing. Living each moment with God, that's a true adventure! Ups and downs, happiness and grief, success and failure, lessons to learn - it's all something God is using to shape me and mold me into the person He wants me to be. There is a time for everything... good and bad... but with God even the bad can turn into something good :)

28And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
(Romans 8)