The end of last week was particularly draining for me for a variety of reasons. All around me it seemed that people close to me were in pain—death, deception, discouragement and dysfunction were some of the themes. I will admit that the burden of it all was oppressive to the point of tears.
Then I was struck by the fact that most of this was not about me and then I felt guilty on top of it all. I believe that some of what I was feeling was helplessness because there was very little I could do to help in any of these circumstances around me. Of course I prayed but when things seem to be falling apart for those around you there is a desire to do something tangible or somehow fix it.
In the midst of all of this I happened to flip my calendar to the month of July. I have a “Gratitude” calendar on my wall at work. Here is the quote for July—“True gratitude is not an incidental ingredient. It is one of the chief ways that God infuses joy and resilience into the daily struggle of live.”
I shared this quote with a couple of people who were also struggling that day with the comment, “We have a lot to be thankful for, don’t we?” Even in our deepest pain God reaches out to us through family, friends and circumstances. When we can’t see anything good in a situation, God will often bring to mind a way that we have been blessed. None of us enjoy the pain or the suffering while we are in it but if we stay faithful and trust God through it we will grow.
In the Biblical story of Job, God allowed Satan to test Job’s faith. The Bible tells us that Job was a man who was “blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.” (Job 1:1) In the process of Job’s testing he lost everything: his children, his possessions and even his health. He still had his “supportive” wife though {sarcasm here}, who said “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die.” But Job’s response to her was “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” (Job 2:9-10)
When we suffer as Christians it is common to hear from unbelievers, “Where is your God now?” or “If there is a God, why is there so much evil in the world?”
The typical answer to these questions is because our world is broken. Sin entered the human race when Adam and Eve rebelled against God. It will be this way until Jesus returns to set up His Kingdom. While this is true, that answer does not bring comfort in the midst of pain.
The good news is that we have a God who knows us and loves us and wants us to cry out to Him. Everyone suffers but it’s what we do with that suffering that matters.
“Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” Romans 5:3-5 NIV
May your hope today be in what is yet to come and your gratitude be for all that God has given.
Have a great day!