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Where Is God When It Hurts?

Dear Sister,

I have a dear friend who recently gave birth to a precious little boy who is not perfect in the world’s eyes. In the last couple months this Mama and Daddy have spent day after day after day in a hospital with their son while their other children keenly feel their absence at home, though well- cared for by other family and church members. Their little guy has already undergone three surgeries and his myriad of doctors anticipate multiple others. Exhaustion, frustration, fear, concern, worry, being overwhelmed are probably their new normal.

It is understandable that the natural mind would ask how a loving God could possibly exist considering all the evil and sadness in our world. This past week seventeen lives were snuffed out in a school shooting. Every day babies are massacred through abortion, husbands leave wives and their little ones, loved ones die of dread diseases, we ourselves are diagnosed with the unthinkable. And if there is a God, the claims of His goodness and compassion are severely overrated—as well as the claims of His omnipotence. After all, if these attributes were true, would He not put a stop to these hardships, sorrows, and sufferings? Where is justice?

Do we, as true Christians, ever have such thoughts, no matter how fleeting? We are familiar with the attributes of God. Some we seem to love more than others. We cherish His love and faithfulness when they bring our desired outcome. When they don’t conform to our image of them because they result in difficulty and discomfort, we tend to grumble and question God’s wisdom, His justice, and His heart.

Compassion is one of His attributes. But where is compassion when troubles overwhelm, suffocate, and sap every ounce of energy?  Maybe our thoughts turn this way because we think of compassion in merely human terms, failing to understand this quality from God’s perspective. In our humanity we think of compassion as feeling deeply for someone, putting our arms around them, even trying to remove the source of their suffering because we hurt for them. We want to make it all better.

A book in my possession lists many of God’s attributes and defines His compassion in this way: “God cares for His children and acts on their behalf.” That sounds wonderful. And if He is also omnipotent in that working on my behalf He will remove the source of my discomfort, won’t He? But this is where our thinking can get skewed.

Working on our behalf does not mean making everything better in the here and now. The promise is that He will make all things right when we see Him face-to-face. His care on our behalf in this life is to comfort in the sorrow, to shelter us under His wings,  to be sure, but to use the trial to make us more like Jesus, thus bringing glory to Him. Removal of difficulties is not His goal.

According to Scripture, Jesus is the God of all comfort and compassion as we walk this unknown and often tedious and rocky pilgrimage. He walked it before us thousands of years ago in His incarnation. He strode dusty streets, felt the pain and anguish and exhaustion of the sick, the anxious, the grieving, and the downtrodden. He was tempted to sin just as we are, but through it all He honored and obeyed the Father, never yielding to His flesh.  He suffered, bled, and died in our place, taking the filth of our sin upon Himself. “Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows,” old Isaiah prophesied. And John told us that “Jesus wept.” But, He rose again following that excruciating death, having endured the fullness of His Father’s wrath,  promising that His children would never experience that judgment but would rise again in like manner, with all their tears wiped away, being glorified forever and ever. Perfect justice mixed with sweet mercy. Our sins on Him. His righteousness in us. That wonderful exchange.

May we be reminded of these precious truths when our minds tend to deceive us into thinking this present suffering is all there is—that it will suffocate and render us incapacitated. Our compassionate God has great purpose in our suffering, purifying us for our heavenly homeland where all will be made right. If He never let us suffer we would never learn to trust Him or be like Him.  This is true compassion. This is how He cares for us and works on our behalf.

Clinging to the Savior with you,

Cherry

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Compassion For Today

Dear sister,

If I’m honest, I’d tell you I hate going through trials.  Hate it.  Yet it is in trials when I really need to cling to the character of God.  One of His many character facets is compassion.  He is a compassionate God.  But what does that mean and how can it help us in the depths of despair?  Sister, let us look to scripture to help us figure out why the compassion of God matters to us today.

Biblically, compassion seems to imply empathy (sympathy or understanding) with action.  In the Old Testament, God often had compassion on Israel after they had disobeyed Him.  He had compassion on them and forgave them of their sin or gave them relief from a trial.  Micah 7:19 says, “He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.” In Lamentations, Jeremiah writes, “but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love (3:32).”  As we move to the New Testament, compassion is mostly used just before Jesus healed, fed, or taught people (Mark 6:34, 8:2; Lk 10:33).  So scripture seems to teach that God’s compassion is most given when sin, sickness, or physical ailments abound.  When these people were in their most need, God had compassion.  He felt deep sorrow and pain with them and then met their genuine need.  He healed, fed, cast out demons, and forgave sins, not because they earned it, but out of His compassionate love, grace, and mercy.

We serve a God who sees.  In fact, that is one of his names, El Roi.  He sees us in our despair, however that looks in our lives.  Perhaps you need Him to help provide for your family?  Or for Him to heal a sickness that threatens you or a loved one?  Maybe you need Him to see a spiritual or mental anguish that needs to be released? Does God still see us and give His compassion to us today?

Yes, sweet sister!  The same God that healed the leper, that touched the woman that bled, that forgave Israel for her spiritual adultery can answer your prayer today.  He sees your pain and sadness and still acts on it with His compassion.  But there is also a dig deeper way that He has shown His compassion.

God has seen His broken creation groan under the curse of Adam for thousands of years.  Millions of deaths, untold numbers of sickness, pain, and sadness that we thought were unseen.  Yet God had compassion on this creation that once was good and sent His Son, Jesus, to come and live the life that we could never live, by obeying God perfectly.  Then Jesus died the death that we deserve because of our sin.  God’s action was killing His beloved Son.  Yet Jesus did not stay in the grave, He rose again three days later cancelling our penalty of death forever!  His compassion results in our forgiveness and eternal life!  What hope that gives us in our sufferings!  That God’s compassion will end all sorrow, pain, and suffering.  We will see Jesus face to face and only have joy forever in heaven with Him!  Yes!  God’s compassion matters to us today!

Your sister in Christ,

Colleen

 

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Spending Our Time

Dear Sister,

2017 was a weird year. I didn’t feel like myself; I was apathetic in my faith at best—and unbelieving at worst. Even the presence of a new romance wasn’t enough to bolster me out of my – Depression? Crisis of faith? I can’t quite put my finger on it.

I have thought about many things I would like to do, but haven’t acted on any of them. Continual promises to “look that up” or “find out more” so I can get “more involved” have been habitually broken, leaving me saddened and regretful that I have not accomplished more of my personal goals.

Considering our technology-saturated lives, there is no doubt that my generation is the most distracted of its time. We are always plugged in to our phones—guilty! Airports boast charging stations and even provide outlets and wi-fi on the plane. Netflix has given us unlimited access to numerous shows, allowing us to waste away mind-numbing hours in front of any one of our preferred screens. Should we then be surprised when it feels nearly impossible to accomplish anything productive? Or to be satisfied when we are constantly bombarded with new information?

Maybe my prolonged “funk” is due to the fact that I have given too much of myself to these manmade distractions. I tell myself “when I’m married, I’ll make better use of my time” or “when I have kids, I’ll be forced into a routine.” But will these milestones really change me? Or will it just be that much harder to break my bad habits?

Toward the end of last year, I heard Jen Wilkin speak at a women’s conference. One point she made regarding use of our time was particularly convicting. She said that we can either fall into the camp that practically believes that “God has not given me enough time so I must be constantly doing things” or the camp that practically believes “God has given me all the time in the world and therefore nothing is urgent.” Of course, none of us thinks like this but how we choose to spend our time paints a concrete picture of our more abstract belief. I tend to fall into the “all the time in the world” camp, slowly moving from one task to another, without any real concern about those tasks that remain unfinished.

Which camp do you fall into, sis? Are you frantically trying to get things done and failing to rest in God’s sovereign provision? Or, are you more like me, lacking a sense of urgency and easily distracted from accomplishing the day’s important tasks?

This new year, let’s encourage each other to spend our time well in the new year, whatever that may look like in each of our lives. I need to kick myself into action most days, but maybe you need to rest more. Let us rejoice in each day that God has given us and cheerfully accomplish those things He has called us to do.

Walking with you,

 

Kayla

“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” -Psalm 118:24

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The Sweetest Comfort I Know

My dear sister,

Have you ever noticed that in the months of November and December people in general consume a lot of sweets?  Sweet sugary foods are well known for the comfort and sense of pleasure they bring to those who eat them.  Experts say that sugar creates a chemical  reaction which washes over several areas of our brains all at once.  This is why when sweet foods are eaten they often give us the same feelings as those we experience when talking with a close friend and/ or watching our favorite movie.  With all of these “good time” feelings being experienced it makes it hard to stop or at the very least to slow down.  We, similar to the addict of other sensor pleasing substances, are looking for and anticipating that next wave of comfort.

The end of the calendar year is also infamous for people seeking personal happiness to a greater degree.  The world around us shouts: “Rejoice!” or “Joy, joy, joy!” and “Making spirits bright, laughing all the way… ho, ho, ho!”  This is not only annoying on the surface level but it is gut wrenching for those who are dealing with broken relationships, pain of loss and loneliness.

When people are unhappy with life they tend to want “some happiness” so the eyes and then the hands turn toward a quick easy fix… which is usually something sweet.  Ahh, the sweet rush of comfort that floods our minds so that we don’t have to think about missing someone or parenting our unruly child or being a helper and not a hinderer to our husbands etc.  “Hurry”, we say to ourselves; “bring me some Figgie pudding or I shall die!” No, I don’t think it is a coincidence that all of this craving for happiness which leads us to an over consumption of sugar is especially tied to this season of the year.

It is my observation that even my brothers and sisters in Christ are prone to wander into the land of sugar plums, candy canes and sweets galore.  Even when we know and proclaim that “Jesus is the reason for the season”.  Somehow our hearts disengage from our minds and before we know it we too are free falling into a sugar coma on our couch as the Hallmark Christmas Movie Marathon wanes on and on and on in the background. Like everyone else we awake with an even deeper ache in our stomachs (sometimes literally and not just figuratively).

So, what to do? Certainly we can have our cake and eat it too right? The key to true comfort my dear sister is to first recognize that you are hooked on a false sense of comfort. I mean, hello who doesn’t want the real deal? The purest form of true comfort comes from knowing our Heavenly Father who happens to  know all things, especially the things that bring comfort or discomfort to our souls.  He not only knows all things He has created all things, including our hearts which long for comfort and peace at a time when it seems hopeless to us.  He sees the bigger picture, yes, even beyond November and December each year. His perspective is eternal, it stretches from Alpha to Omega. We can trust Him to help us, to comfort us, to deliver us …

The sweetest comfort we can ever know my dear sister is already ours! He is Jesus Christ, the precious Son of God.  He is our true comfort in all times and in all ways. He is our true joy! He is our true strength! Why not feed on what is true and not false? Maybe you have already overindulged in what gives you a false sense of comfort, it is never too late to put that cookie down and to embrace the true and better comfort.

My prayer for all of us as we enter into a new year is that we will finish well (all the way to next November and December) and that we will fix our eyes on the best, the sweetest, prize of all, Jesus!  Unlike those cookies and candies He never grows old or stale. I will leave off with comforting words from the great comforter:

The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.
The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.
I bless the LORD who gives me counsel;
in the night also my heart instructs me.
I have set the LORD always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
my flesh also dwells secure.
For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
or let your holy one see corruption.
You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Your sister in Christ,

Susan

 

 

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Faithful in Awe

Dear Sister,

The other day I watched as a jumbo jet lumbered earthward, closer and closer as it approached the runway. I never cease to be in awe of the human minds which God has made capable of inventing such things as vehicles soaring in the sky. I’ve watched airplanes since I was a little girl and the thrill of seeing them taking off, flying above, and landing has never waned.

As I thought about this, my mind wandered to other things which bring me an undiminishing sense of awe. A baby born, first steps, thunderstorms, radishes popping out of sodden dirt after a hailstorm in my childhood first garden.

I pondered some more about ‘awesome’ things and my mind settled on the most amazing thought of all, a story which, sadly,  often ceases to amaze us as our busy minds and hearts and lives become inured to the sheer wonder of what happened two millennia ago at the center of our planet. It is a story that began in eternity past, a concept and reality our finite minds cannot readily grasp.

The Godhead, in infinite love and mercy and grace for a certain people marked out for undeserved favor, covenanted in a remarkable plan to send the Son as the Savior of His chosen ones to adopt them as heirs of everything the Father possesses, never to be disowned. The Old Testament tells the promise and lead-up to the appearing of the Savior Son.

Overwhelming truth.

And then, when the fullness of the time had come, God the Father sent the Spirit to overshadow a faithful young virgin and planted the Son in her womb to be born in human flesh, a man, yet remaining fully God. Truly befitting the word “awesome”.

O, Mystery of mysteries.

Some others were looking up in the skies one night. These wise men saw a star, unfamiliar, a star in the East, a star they followed until it lit over the king of Kings in a lowly manger in the City of David. God had come to earth to live with man. Immanuel.

Humbling thought!

The story does not end in Bethlehem. Jesus, the God-Man, born under the law, grew up to obey the law perfectly in order to fulfill what God commanded me, but I could not.

Merciful reflection!

My sins were placed on Him as He suffered, nailed to the wooden tree, feeling the full fury of God’s just wrath, receiving what I deserved so that I might be right with God.

Staggering contemplation!

Three days later the Father raised from death this perfect, sacrificial Lamb—raised for my justification and the promise of my own resurrection.

Breathtaking miracle!

When Gabriel, the angel from God, appeared to sweet Mary, this pure, young maiden had only vague ideas of what this child to be placed in her womb would accomplish. Surely she predicted the inevitable gossip and inaccurate judgments concerning His origin since Mary was unmarried, yet she faithfully submitted to God’s will for her life, knowing that this was the promised Messiah coming to take away sins. How that would occur she could only speculate within the framework of her Jewish upbringing and its sacrificial system.  When she held the little one nine months later she pondered all these things in her heart. After Jesus’ death and subsequent resurrection, when she went to live with John and his family, much began to be clear since that day many preceding years when the angel had said, “Hail, Mary, highly favored one!” Old, devout, and righteous Simeon certainly had told her that a sword would pierce her mama’s heart. And then! He was risen, just as He said.

Magnificent and awe-filled meditation.

As the disciples watched the cloud take Him back to His Father, the angel assured them that this same Jesus would return for them and for us, reiterating what the Master had promised on one of those days when they walked and sat with Him.

Blessed anticipation!

May these truths continually and faithfully fill our hearts with the Awe of all awes as we worship Christ, the Savior, the King of all kings and Lord of all lords this Christmas.

Love,
Cherry

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