FAITH ON TRIAL: Part 4b – If God is so loving why do we experience so much suffering?
To deal with suffering and disappointments, we need God’s perspective on life.
1) Gain a fresh awareness that God is beside us in our disappointments.
Job 13 [15] Though He slay me, I will hope in Him. Nevertheless I will argue my ways before Him.
Job 42 [1] Then Job replied to the LORD: [2] “I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted. [3] You asked, “Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance? It is I and I was talking about things I knew nothing about, things far too wonderful for me.”
In the end, even though he didn’t have all of the answers, Job came to the realization that God was right beside him the whole time.
Deut. 31 [6] Be strong! Be courageous! Do not be afraid of them! For the Lord your God will be with you. He will never fail you nor forsake you.
That’s not our perspective when disappointment first hits us. Let’s face it. Most of us feel that being a Christian should somewhat EXCUSE us from trials and sufferings. Now, if someone were to ask us we would probably say that we realize that sufferings may come, but that we don’t think of them as really necessary in our lives. We think of sufferings as signs that something is wrong with us. After all, if we stay strong in our relationship with God, things should go well. And, if we have trouble, we feel like Christianity doesn’t really work after all. Wrong perspective!
Listen, this is the pivotal point where disappointment, failed dreams or suffering can either bury you or raise you up – make you bitter or better. God never promises a rose garden in this life – but He did promise that He would see us through life … that He would do life BESIDE us, not BEHIND us or IN FRONT of us … right BESIDE us … guiding us!
THE HUMPTY DUMPTY SYNDROME
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall;
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall;
All the King’s horses and all the King’s men
Couldn’t put Humpty Dumpty together again.
Can you identify with Humpty Dumpty? Have you taken a great fall lately? Does it seem like your brokenness is beyond repair? But as Jesus sees us in our distress, He is not a casual observer. He is in the midst of our suffering – He feels it, He can identify with it, He experienced it Himself. After we have been broken by the hard realities of doing life, like Humpty Dumpty, all the king’s horses and all the King’s men†may not be able to us back together again but the real King of the Universe can …
Hebrews 4 [15] This High Priest [Jesus Christ] of ours understands our weaknesses since He had the same temptations we do, though He never once gave way to them and sinned.
A love that does not suffer with the suffering of people is not love at all. We need to remember that God is not far off some where. He has shed tears too. He is right in the midst of our pain.
Isaiah 41 [10] Fear not for I am with you I will help you.
Sometimes we just don’t have an answers. But, in reality and from God’s perspective, we don’t really need to know why – we just need to know Who. Job felt the same way He didn’t know the answers as to why he went through what he did – but he knew the One who had the answers: God.
