Tag: promises

The other night I was getting Hannah ready for bed when the big question came up.

We were talking about how when her daddy was diagnosed with cancer, we prayed and hoped for the best outcome, for him to be healed and get better.

Then came the question: “Why did God say no?” Her deep brown eyes and long eyelashes looked up at me, pleading for an answer.

I paused, knowing this question was coming. “That’s a good question,” I answered. “I don’t know. God doesn’t always answer prayers the way we want Him to. But God promises us He is with us, He loves us and takes care of us even when it hurts and is hard.”

Hannah didn’t say much; she just listened so I went on. “And that doesn’t mean we should stop praying, either. What I do know is that God is with us when we pray. God wants us to talk to Him and pray and get to know Him.”

I’m not sure how much of this Hannah really took in as she then changed the subject. The big “why” question is something I have pondered even before this…why God allows pain and suffering. From my limited human understanding, and from what I’ve read in the Bible and know about the heart of God, I can see He hurts just as much as we do when we are in pain. I think suffering is a result of the broken world we live in. Why is a big question…and I don’t claim to know the answers.

What I do know is that God is near those who mourn, suffer and are brokenhearted. He sits with us. Brings light to our darkness.

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” – Matthew 5:4

“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” – Psalm 34:18

This is my truth right now. Mourning…grieving…brokenhearted…yet also comforted and deeply loved. The character and heart of God seem so complex to our human minds, yet His love is so simple and pure. I don’t need to earn it or go out of my way to find or understand it. I just need to let myself rest in God’s love and be comforted. It sounds so simple. Sometimes it is that easy. Sometimes my anxiety or grief take over. And I have to let myself breathe. Rest. Let things be as they are.

I know that my days aren’t going to be perfect. I know that grief is going to be messy. I know that sometimes my anxiety will get the best of me. But I also know that I don’t have to try to figure everything out all alone. I am navigating this brokenness one day at a time…by the grace of God.

I am grieving and brokenhearted.
I am hurting and yet I am hopeful.
I am hopeful in promises and truth.
I am in pain and yet I am comforted.
I am surrounded and I am blessed.
I am blessed because I am loved.