"The roads to Zion mourn, for no one comes to the festivals;
all her gates are desolate, her priests groan
her young girls grieve, and her lot is bitter."
Lamentations 1:4
I think it's pretty clear to all of us that the world is a far from perfect place. Rev. Eugene Cho's recent post about three Christian martyrs highlights that this is true even for those whose confidence is in the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. And even if these stories seem far away, my year as a hospital chaplain made clear to me that, no matter who you are, even if your life is going pretty well today, it is only a matter of time before either you or a loved one experiences something difficult.
Where do we turn when things seem overwhelming and even hopeless? I remember as a young Christian speaking with someone about a deep hurt her family was experiencing. With the best of intentions my advice to her was, "You should read the Book of Job." I wanted to convey to her that the Bible had much to say about suffering, and I was hoping that God would speak to her through Job. The truth is, all I ended up giving her was a prescription when I could have pointed her to God himself. I was telling her where to turn, but not to whom.
In Matthew 11 Jesus says, "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest...you will find rest for your souls." Come to me...what an incredible thing for the creator of heaven and earth to say! Yet, taking this passage in Lamentations as an example, we don't need to edit what we're going through for God, even if it doesn't sound so good or holy, or even if we're near hopelessness. He doesn't want the things we think we have to bring him. He wants us. Confused, broken, or lost as we are...he wants us.
2 comments:
my favorite verse is 1 Peter 5:7 "Cast all your cares to the Lord" because from my experience, everything that i've been through has been taken care of. It may not be the next day or even the next month or yr but eventually and always, He does give you rest :). But don't think for one second that when things are going good, you can start ignoring him. Remember what he did for you and do exactly what ben mentioned on the last devotional :). good word ben i needed that
"he wants us"
as simple as that may seem to some, i find that this statement has a very profound message.
thanks.
Post a Comment