So what do you do when things just don’t make sense? When the journey is hard, when questions far outweigh the answers? What happens to the faith journey when there has been relentless prayers, but seemingly no change.
It seems like in the last week I have been around a lot of this. People struggling with hard/hurtful relationships, those struggling with long-term serious health issues, some heavy issues weighing on people. So many trying to chase dreams and facing setbacks. Many wondering where God is in all of it. I have a son who is now on month twenty of dealing with sports-related injuries. His dream of playing college basketball, which so many times was within reach, once again seems pretty illusive. It does beg the question… so where is God in all of it?
Sometimes I am at a loss for what to say, and how to encourage people. But I do know that many times in the last six weeks I saw God move in some dramatic ways in the lives of people. During this time we had four RHYTHMinTWENTY and Rogue events out in Colorado. It was tiring, but they were also some of the best times of the last year. There were several stories of seeing God work in the lives of these guys, their ministries, their marriages, and their families in some very real and deep ways. I saw examples of marriages restored, renewed passion in their pursuit of God, some dreams realized, and answered prayer, without a doubt.
So today as I walk through some of the hard times with people, and as I process things going on with others close to me, it helps to remember… It helps to remember the many ways God has moved, worked, healed, restored. As I think of my son’s struggles, it helps to remember that as a result of the last twenty months of physical struggle, he is a more compassionate, spiritually stronger, and a more resilient young man.
So, even as I write this I am finding some strength and needed encouragement in remembering, in focusing on truth, in believing and knowing that God is on the move. He is at work. He does walk with us through all of what life throws at us.
Tonight I am reminded again of Psalm 51. It was a desperate time for David, but he writes, “Renew in me a steadfast spirit, restore to me the joy of thy salvation, sustain me with a willing spirit.”
So here is to the journey of the next week and all that comes with it, and here is to the hope of seeing Him move…
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