by David Brenneman
It's often very difficult to determine what purpose was or is behind what God allows in our lives or the lives of others we see, hear, or know.
God isn't off somewhere asleep or even too busy holding the universe together to be with each and every single individual who has the breath of life.
So why? What purpose could be had for tragedies we see or hear or experience ourselves?
Things in life that God allows are not mistakes. No such thing as random happenings or karma.
Jesus Christ isn't ignorant of what emotional and physical pains people go through. The very Scriptures says He was a man of sorrows well acquainted with grief.
In some people's lives it takes a tragedy to break through to their hearts. Some will grieve in the ways men and women do. Still others will finally stop running from Jesus because of it.
Life is already hard. It's made worse by Satan's destructive tendencies. He not only is a liar and the father of lies, he's known as the destroyer. When permitted he takes life.
We do not know the full extent of the battles in the spiritual world.
We do know that we have an Advocate for the Believer. One who understands our everything. One who is ready to comfort us in our hour of need, our seemingly darkest hours of life.
My Dear Reader a prayer doesn't always need words. Many times grief doesn't come with words. For the life of a Believer, words aren't necessary. We read in the Bible that when words cannot be found that the Spirit intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. The Spirit prays on our behalf.
The Spirit is also known as the Comforter. He will comfort those who grieve because He knows. He knows the hurt, the pain, the immense loneliness of loss. He lived it with Jesus when Jesus was separated from His Father on the cross.
Sometimes none of what we see happening to people makes even a shred of sense. Sometimes for the rest of our lives we will never know nor understand. Job didn't understand the importance of his painful torment on this Earth until after he died. Countless millions of people have been to the pages of the book of Job to seek understanding and comfort.
Jesus also knows who will be receiving His free gift of salvation and who will not. He knows every single beginning from the end for every single person who will ever live.
He knows what will get through to someone in order to be able to save them too. Even if it makes no earthly sense. He knows what will motivate you and I. He knows if our future will not include what's important towards a life in Christ.
Jesus paid the ultimate price in dying once for all. The grief was but for a moment but was so profound it altered human history. It brought hope to eternity for the part of humanity that was going to seek a Savior who is Christ the Lord.
The grief of the separation of the Father from the Son of God would never be equalled in all eternity.
We must keep moving forward.
We must keep moving on.
The day this day is has already proven that the world didn't stop turning. People are still milling about with lives that must continue on.
I too have griefs that I deal with on a daily basis. Being a Christian provides no immunity from it. It brings the comfort of my God to bear upon it. My Savior often has His arms around me when I have no works to speak.
Words are often hollow at times of grief and mourning. We just want back what we lost and deep down know it's not going to happen. A hole is in out hearts that only our Creator knows what to do with.
Pray for those who are grieving in your world today. If possible just be with them, you don't need to necessarily speak either.
Just breathe. Pray yourself to accomplish what God wants of you in that moment.
Our world changes in an instant.
All it takes is an opportunity and lives are not the same. One moments distraction turns lives on edge. One natural disaster erases a lifetime of effort to build up.
Jesus is still the same yesterday, today and forever.
The Spirit is still the Helper, the Advocate, the Comforter.
The Father is still our Father in Heaven, still Holy, still the Righteous One.
All NASB 1995 and NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. (C) Lockman Foundation.
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