These days may feel like dark days in our families & our community. In our nation & across the globe.
There’s too much bad news to bear. A global pandemic. Unwanted diagnosis. Unexpected death.
Politics are in disarray. God’s laws are disregarded. There is no absolute truth (we’re told)
We can look around & sigh. And conclude:
‘The world is broken. I am broken. And my need is dire.’
(Rebecca Reynolds)
‘We are all broken-that’s how the light gets in’ according to Hemingway. And how we need the Great Light of the world to shine!
As children of God, we live in tension & contrast.
We are made in the image of God- yet struggle with our flaws & failings.
The Darkness seems deep yet flickers of light break through.
There’s toil & trouble yet {thankfully} the hope of glory.
Evil feels like it’s crouching nearby, ever ready to pounce on Goodness.
Our earth is a groaning planet-earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, war.
At a personal level, day to day life rarely feels smooth or predictable . While we have many blessings there’s usually something to taint our happiness.Even bright sunny days can be overcast by boulders carried in our hearts.
Rick Warren has spoken of how his wife Kay was diagnosed with breast cancer at the same that his book ‘The purpose driven life’ was becoming a bestseller.
I listened to an audio-version of Rick’s wife’s book ‘Choose joy for happiness isn’t enough’Her words feel even more poignant since the tragic news that their son committed suicide. In the book, Kay describes joy & sorrow like parallel tracks on the railway of life.
Lisa Harper wrote:
‘Delight and despair absolutely coexist. They ebb and flow like the tides. Circumstances may prompt one to rise to the occasion and eclipse the other for a while.’
I too am convinced that joy & sorrow, love & suffering, peace & pain are inextricably linked –but in an even more intricate way than parallel tracks or tides on the shore.
Perhaps, they are intertwined like the twisting double stranded helix molecule of DNA – the blue print of life itself. Just as DNA is held together by hydrogen bonds, the twists & turns in life are stabilised by intricate bonds of the love & mercy, grace & goodness of God.
Just now, in this moment of time, our lives may seem like a tangled mess- but with the eye of faith, we can choose to see that even the troubles & trials, stresses & strains, the bitter & sweet are part of the intricate plans of the perfect infinite wisdom of our God.
Our God created the cosmos, designed our souls & planned our destinies. Yet He carries our burdens and collects our tears:
‘You have taken account of my wanderings; Put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in your book?’
(Psalms 56:8NASB)
‘You’ve kept track of my every toss and turn through the sleepless nights, Each tear entered in your ledger, each ache written in your book.’
(Psalm 56:8 MSG)
We have to choose to see the unseen-to trace the invisible fingerprints of God in our lives, as He weaves His thread of blessings through the twisting helix of life. He alone can weave all things together for our good (Romans 8:28) into the plans He has for us (Jeremiah 29:11)
Even when things don’t seem to make sense, & everything seems random & chaotic , we can praise Him where we are at ‘in the storm- even when our hearts are torn’ (Casting crowns)
God brings blessing to our dark days. And often, the greatest blessings is the gift of God Himself. The gift of knowing He is there- with us. And that knowing God is better than knowing why bad things happen.
As Laura Story wrote:
‘Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise’
I listened to that song on repeat during days of dreadful diagnoses & life threatening surgery in our family & pondered:
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise?
God’s tender mercies & gentle blessings come even {maybe especially} when everything feels broken:
God said:
“And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness— secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name.”
(Isaiah 45:3 NLT)
Our God gives:
Treasures in the darkness
Calm in chaos
Peace in the storm
Hope in our dark days
His presence forever
And ever!
{Amen}
Blessings,
Ruthx
Blessed! 