Life struggles are going to be present in all way, shape, and form. I think everyone will agree with me here when I say that no one has lived a life free of pain and suffering. This week, my devotional book is discussing this. The next couple days will be dealing with how we as Christians can deal with hard times - which we know are bound to happen.
I found it very ironic that this week was dealing with this topic. Over the weekend, some loved ones of mine were discussing this issue "hard times in relation to God" and we all had our theories. All of us had come to terms with different ways of thinking about pain and suffering and where God is in the midst of it. So, this morning when I read devotions, I was comforted and reminded that God is present in our lives, and I believe that He knew I would need to read these chapters at this moment in my life.
As I said above, bad things are bound to happen to everyone. Death, accidents, divorce, miscarriage, abuse...there are so many forms of pain that we all have come in contact with. In my (almost) 25 years of life, I have dealt with a fair amount of suffering. Losing grandparents, a best friend, an accident - these are just a few. But through all of these things, I chose to trust God and lean on His understanding. I never had my questions answered, but I knew well enough that God was carrying me through - and that is what mattered to me.
The Bible says, "suffering produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us". Through pain and hurt we can choose to have hope. With this great hope, we can have peace that God is in control. Job is a great example of this hope. He cried out to God countless times, still he believed. God never explained Job's suffering or made sense of the loss he had to bear, but He was there every step of the way, showing His unconditional love. And that's what matters!
At the end of devotions today, there was this great truth that hit me hard. I want to share it with you!
"The why questions become means to an end. And even though the end may not bring the answers you're looking for, once you reach it, you're no longer as concerned about why because something more beautiful and fulfilling has happened - you've experienced life in the presence of God.""Suffering produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope."
Romans 5:3-4
No comments:
Post a Comment