Just One Thing Right
read>
Despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us (v.37).
I prayed really hard,” she said, “‘Please, God, could just one thing go right forme?’ And one hour later I got a horrid case of the flu!” At the precipice of bitterness, she had legitimate questions. She cried out to God. And she got what seemed to be a divine prank!
Suffering touches all of us. But when someone else is in it—when we’re on the outside looking in—we have several options: We can avoid the situation and metaphorically avert our gaze. (This denies the human condition.) We can offer empty words of advice, or worse yet, criticism. (This naively believes that all things make sense in this life. We might feel better. But they won’t.) We can climb into their pain and walk alongside them. (This may make us a target for the person’s pain. But it’s the loving thing to do.)
The apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans was written to a people oppressed by a tyrant. It was an oppression Paul knew intimately. So he quoted the psalmist: “For Your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep” (8:36; Psalms 44:22—this psalm was penned during a time of national defeat for Israel). But Paul went on: “Despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us” (Romans 8:37). His viewpoint culminates in some of the most triumphant language ever written. “Neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love” (v.38).
Are you or someone you love going through a dark season? “Weeping may last through the night,” sang the psalmist David, “but joy comes with the morning” (Psalms 30:5). We can trust the loving hand of the One who knows our deepest pain.
—Tim Gustafson
more>
Psalms 44:17 is the cry of a people who don’t understand why they’re suffering. How does this resonate with your experience?
next>
How do you react when faced with tough times? Do you allow what you perceive to be unfair to drive you to God, or do you push Him away? Why?
powerful perspective of adam and eve - good featuring matthew west and leigh nash (from the story) from worshiphousemedia on godtube.
