Difficult Times

My heart is heavy today.  So many of my friends, friends of friends and acquaintances are going through such difficult times ~ not just day-to-day, minor infractions, but life-altering distress ~ and they're hurting.  They're dealing with the loss of a spouse or the loss of a parent.  Some have had the gut-wrenching experience of losing their child,  another had a heinous act of violence committed to their child.  Still some are dealing with the loss of finances, and another the loss of a decades-long marriage.

"There are always times when I think I can't go on ~ When the battle seems so heavy, and the road I walk so long.  When the future seems uncertain, and the past just never ends...

There are always trials where I think that I will fail ~ when my heart is tired and empty, and my spirit seems so frail.  When I've given all I have and there's nothing left within..."

How can one go on to any sense of normalcy in their lives after such crises?

How can we, as their friend, help them through such a time of great distress?

I try to imagine how I would cope with such a staggering loss.  I would feel fear. Panic.  Gut-wrenching pain.  Not able to breathe.  Rage. Hopelessness. Overwhelmed.

At the loss of her precious mother, a close friend of mine told me that the last thing she wanted to hear was the tried and true verse:  "All things work together for good for them that know Christ." She was in pain and didn't see any good in the cancer that destroyed her mother's body and the slow death she died.  There was no platitude for her loss.

So, where is God in all of this?  Aren't Christians supposed to live the good life, free from trouble, free from worry, free from tribulation?

Quite the contrary.  Jesus Himself told His disciples that "in this world you will have trouble." (John 16:33) The Apostle James wrote in the first chapter of his book: "Consider it pure joy whenever you face trials of many kinds..."

You may think that's not a great selling point for Christianity, but the fact remains that we will face trials in our lives.  But to have joy during a trial?  How is that even possible?

First of all, one must realize that joy does not equal happiness.  Happiness is a feeling that can change or fade over time. Deep, abiding joy is the fruit of the Spirit that believers receive upon salvation.  It never abates, never leaves the heart of the Christian.

So how can we "joyfully" go on with trials such as these?

The phrase to the above song:  "I can come before the Father, to where my hope (and) life begins."

Jesus continued in verse 33 of John 16 ~ "...But take heart!  I have overcome the world!"

James continues that "because you know the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."

I can't explain it, but somehow, in His time, God gives you peace, strength and yes, even joy during a difficult time.

Before my dad died, I had nightmares of his death.  I dreamed of his funeral and the devastating loss of him simply not being there anymore.  I was terrified when the moment would come.  I couldn't bear to think of his death, the moment I'd see him in the casket, his burial.  It was simply too much.

When it did, I cried.  I cried rivers of tears for not being able to see him one last time, or to tell him I loved him.  I cried that my kids might not remember him very well or know how much he loved them.  I cried that the baby I was carrying would never know her papa's love.

Scripture that I had memorized over the years gave me such comfort.  "To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord."  I let that verse flow over me like a warm cloak on the 4-hour trip home.

When I saw my Dad in the casket, another verse came to mind.  "He is not here, for he is risen."  That earthly shell my dad possessed for 69 years looked ~ empty. He, James Steele, was no longer housed in his body.  His eternal soul had risen and he was in Heaven, more alive than he had ever been.

After all the ceremonies, my family went back to the Veteran's cemetery for one last goodbye.  As the hubs and kiddos and I waited, we witnessed the cemetery workers burying the last person.  When I saw the depth of the grave and the concrete vault being slowly and reverently lowered in and covered with earth, my heart ~ rejoiced.

Because when the Trumpet sounds, none of it ~ the casket, the vault, the tons of earth that cover my dad's sleeping body ~ will matter.  He will be changed in a moment, and, if I'm still alive at the time, I will meet him in the air!

"Where, oh death, is your victory?  Where, oh, death is your sting?  But thanks be to God!  He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

Jesus overcame everything that Satan and this fallen world threw at him.  Yet He was ever mindful of His purpose ~ to be our Savior.  He gave God the glory in everything He did.

No matter what storms arise in our lives, God will be glorified if we allow Him to be.  Just like Christ, we must be mindful of our purpose.  Yes, we grieve, and rightfully so.  We miss the loved ones we lose to death.  We don't understand why in a fit of rage, a person would shake a baby to silence them.  We can't wrap our heads around why a crazed lunatic would abduct a little girl and then murder her. We are frustrated that it now takes so much money to live a comfortable, normal lifestyle. We want to find the person to be our forever love.

However, in the darkness, a sweet melody breaks through.

Those final "I love you's" a daughter shares with her dying mother ~ the memory of another mom's bright smile as her family is gathered around her ~ a weeping mother recalling with a smile how that her 10 year old daughter accepted Jesus as her Savior 2 weeks before she was killed ~ a brave, loving 7 year old brother running to the neighbor's house to call 911 ~ just in time to save his baby sister's life ~ an unexpected job offer ~ the time we realize that God is the relentless Lover of our souls.

"God never moves without purpose or plan, when trying His servant and molding a man.  Give thanks to the Lord, though your testing seems long.  In darkness, He giveth a song.

I could not see through the shadows ahead, so I looked at the cross of my Savior instead.  I bowed to the will of the Master that day.  Then peace came, and tears fled away.

Oh rejoice in the Lord.  He makes no mistake.  He knoweth the end of each path that I take.  For when I am tried and purified, I shall come forth as gold."