“In every pew there is a broken heart, speak often on suffering and you will never lack for a congregation.” – Joseph Parker
Job 1:20-22 (ESV) 20 Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. 21 And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” 22 In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.
Job 10:1 (KJV) My soul is weary of my life; I will leave my complaint upon myself; I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.
Job 10:18-19 (KJV) 18 Wherefore then hast thou brought me forth out of the womb? Oh that I had given up the ghost, and no eye had seen me! I should have been as though I had not been; I should have been carried from the womb to the grave.
“Meanwhile, where is God? This is one of the most disquieting symptoms of grief. Go to him when your need is desperate, when all other help is vain, and what do you find? A door slammed in your face, and the sound of bolting and double bolting on the inside!” – C.S. Lewis (from A Grief Observed)
Where Is God In Sorrow?
- God is right here.
- God knows your pain.
- God knows you.
Matthew 10:29-31 (ESV) 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
How Do We Navigate Our Suffering?
- Be Prepared
- Ask for Help
- Remind ourselves of the Purpose
Romans 5:1-5 (ESV) Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Big Idea: As a child of God, there is no suffering we will endure that our Father will waste on us!