Shaft of Hope

"Redemption is not perfection. The redeemed must realize their imperfections."

                                                                                                               ~ John Piper

Virginia Tech. Columbine. September 11th. Jonesboro, Arkansas. Newtown, Connecticut. 

A few years back, those names and dates would have been associated with education, or hope, or something other than what we now think when these names come to mind.
Today, it provokes thoughts of senseless violence, the suffering and death of innocents and needless tragedy.
It brings a sadness to our hearts and in some cases, our grief yields to a quiet, ceaseless anger.

Some turn to the government or some other agency which attempts to produce hope when they are going through a personal trial; this rarely works.
The failure occurs when we look for a material or physical solution for something that is spiritual in nature; suffering in this life is, at its root, spiritual.
Yet, there are times when a large response to suffering in a physical way does produce good things.

For example, our government's response to suffering is generally an attempt to eliminate it; as such, from this we now have vaccines for many diseases which once dealt a death blow to children.
Yet, as a consequence, new enemies developed; such as AIDS and Swine Flu. 
When added to wars, terrorism or economic instability, you quickly discover that well-intentioned efforts become similar to an unspiritual version of wack-a-mole.

Regardless of our pain or our suffering - through disease, death and even monumental personal tragedy which leaves scars none can see - it is comforting to know that God will

ultimately heal the planet of pain, suffering and death.
Until then, it is extremely difficult for us to reconcile our pain in this life with a loving God because what we are experiencing now isn't the same as what God had intended us to have on the Earth.

In such times, Christians will often turn the Word of God, and rightly so; yet, the Bible offers no guarantee that suffering will be removed from our lives.
It does however promise that pain, suffering and death will one day be redeemed.
Until that time in which the Lord Himself descends and does so, we can take some solace in the fact that suffering and loss does have a usefulness in this life - not just in the world to come.

Pain and suffering, whatever form it may take in  your life, provides a grand introspection - although we don't see it at the time.
As a result, emotional pain will reveal to us what is really important in life, causing us to shed some of the baggage we've carried around for years needlessly.

As suffering over a loss will ultimately cause you to become thankful for the time you had with a loved one and long for the day when you rejoin them in eternity, emotional pain will ultimately point to Christ, as our Healer and Redeemer.

Few realize that the Bible is one long story of Redemption; of God seeking that which has been lost and reconciling His people to Himself.
He is truly a God of Second Chances.

When Adam sinned as the federal head of the human race, God did not strike him down and start over with another. Instead, God provided a way for him to be redeemed.
Adam's son Cain killed his own brother; yet, God did not eliminate him off the earth nor did He allow him to become a marked man. Cain was spared his life and sent away into the east.
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were fully blessed and inherited the Covenant Promise of God; this, in spite of their lives or deception.
God called Moses to lead His people; who then was hesitant. 
David was lusty enough for his eyes to get steamy while watching another man's wife take a bath; yet, Bathsheba isn't what David is remembered for in Israel today - instead, it was his rock solid repentance.

Amazingly, when you read the Bible you will find within its pages a rather large assortment of liars, cheaters, adulterers and murderers.
And the one over-arching theme with every story of every person is rescue; then the rescue is followed by hope.

From what is in Scripture, we learn that when God seems absent and we are suffering, it is up to us to show His presence. Often in these times of pain, the world only knows God and His truth through the witness of His followers.
If we were to act on our natural instinct, we would flee suffering every time.
But sometimes, there is no easy escape and at times, we should not want to escape because the redeemed product is better than the fallen mess which once existed.

Like Jesus, Christians are not exempt from suffering.
Yet, the trials we endure become a major opportunity for grace; a chance for God to reveal Himself in a real and prolific way through our lives.

Repeatedly in spiritual surveys with individual Christians, people report growing more spiritually when they have endured a time of suffering, pain, loss or crisis.
This teaches us that there is a spiritual value in our emotional or physical suffering; now, suffering and pain certainly were not a part of God's original plan, but as a redemptive transformation which takes place amid a trial, God allows us to find something greater and more worthy than just simply the pain of darkness.

For God offers us a ray of hope, a bright shaft of light shining through all our pain and turmoil in the present, redeeming it into something greater that we can see in the moment.
His hands remain open and His arms wide; and as we begin to look at Him, His redeeming grace begins to transform our suffering and pain into something He can use through your life to provide hope and truth to others as He heals you.

You see, we are too concerned in life with how things will turn out.
God, on the other hand, is far more concerned with how you and I will turn out.

And if you are trusting Him amid your trials and triumphs, I can promise you things will turn out just fine in the end.

Until next time, win one for the good guys.