Hello ,
I have to freely admit to you from the outset of today's e-Devotional; I hate to watch someone suffer physical pain.
In my profession over
the years, I have witnessed it more than I want to, and yet I feel somehow feel it to be a privilege to share the time with the person who is struggling. That may sound like a strange way to begin a devotional, but I have a reason for it.
I have had my share of suffering over the past 2 years, and I have to say that I have really struggled
with the idea that I have struggled as much as I have, and have even questioned why God brought me back and kept me around like He did. I recognize that I may sound somewhat faithless in admitting my vulnerability, but I have struggled with understanding everything that I have personally been through; and I believe others probably do as well.
There are many people in Christendom who desire a Jesus who makes everything O.K....all the time. And still, we often see physical suffering in ourselves (or others,) that can cause us to question whether or not he actually does care.
A number of years ago I stumbled onto a series of videos by a pastor that I am
quite amazed by. I'm even more amazed, now that I have experienced immense suffering in my own life.
Ed Dobson was the former pastor of a 5000+ member church, but passed away in 2015 of Lou Gehrig's disease. He took on the idea of suffering down an avenue of thought that took my breath away. He didn't pretend that it doesn't exist,
he faced it head-on, with brutal honesty, struggle, and even some clarity about facing it.
He didn't act like it's all going to be O.K. in his physical world. This video doesn't sugar coat many of our pre-conceived notions as to the "why" of human suffering, but it very aptly embraces the idea that we also have a Jesus who chose to suffer for us, and a Jesus that suffers with
us. This idea can give us strength and courage for each new day.
Watch this video clip for yourself, and I hope you'll grasp what he's trying to share: Video
Clip
May God give each of us the strength to understand and to wrap our minds around the idea that Christ's life, and His example is worthy of emulating; including His immense suffering for us.
We have a God who understands us because He is one of us!
Have a great day and God bless!
