The Comfort We Need
By Jennie Pierce
“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.”
Romans 8:18
It’s the bittersweet reality of life. And, for a small rural high school tucked away in Colorado’s northeast corner, death has made no exception. As students weep, ache, and mourn, they ask the inevitable - - and most times the unanswerable - - “Why?” Why a young sophomore boy whose future looked so bright and promising? Hallways teem with echoing cries as students seek comfort through hugs, talks, silence. “Really, God? Really?” Yes, I, too, dare ask the raw, bold question. In all the ugliness that life throws at us, how can there be hope or comfort? ?
It is in dark times like this, we need to remember that all is not as it should be. Since the Fall, all of creation - - mankind included - - is groaning. This groaning draws us, as humans, to desire and long for something MORE. And, in our weakness, when we find ourselves in utter desperation without words to pray to the Father, the Spirit, Himself, “intercedes for us with groans that [our] words cannot express” (Romans 8:26).
Yes, even in despairing times, we can rejoice, knowing that one day, all will be as it should be. Our God is at work “for the good of those who love Him” (v. 28) and when it seems all else is against us, He is still FOR us (v. 31)! All will be as it should be someday because God has promised that He will finish it! Until that day, we do more than just survive. We thrive…because there IS hope, comfort and encouragement. Those who are God’s have the pleasure of living in real love - - God’s love - - the kind of love that cannot be taken away (v. 36). And we continue to live in real victory! A victory powered by the same power that raised Christ from the dead.
Elizabeth Elliot so poignantly reminds us that “pain is necessary to all of us… that out of the deepest pain [comes] the strongest conviction of the presence of God and the love of God.”(1) In the meantime, when we help, love, serve and encourage those around us, we are giving others a small taste of the glory that is coming! The way life was meant to be! Even come quickly, Lord Jesus.
GOING DEEPER:
1. Memorize Romans 8:18
2. Write down questions you may have about why there is pain in the world. Ask God to give you His thoughts and perspectives through His Word, the Bible.
FURTHER READING:
(1) Elizabeth Elliott, http://dailychristianquote.com/dcqelliot.html (Jan. 2012)
Formerly at Oakwood Church, we share Jennie with a church in rural northeast Colorado, where she ministers with her husband/pastor and is the mother of two teenagers and a college student. She is active in her church’s musical worship ministry and works as a para support at their local public school.
