Sep 26th (410 words)
Let it rain! “I always like walking in the rain, so no one can see me crying.” From Charlie Chaplin. Is this a morbid thought? Is it something Christians shouldn’t say? Is it a reflection that you find embarrassing? I had to bring up a quote I might have shared before.
The whole point of Mr. Chaplin’s words is that he didn’t want to embarrass others by the inner pain that was causing his eyes to drip salt water.
Often when I write my posts I start with where I am. Sometimes happy sometimes sad…
Today I was glad for the rain but… also recognizing incredible pain and brokenness in the world around us! What do we do with all that pain?
“Great Scott – dear God, we need you!”
I just had a conversation about this world of pain – and how often God is with us in the pain instead of taking us out of the pain.
We talked about how God suffered for us (so we don’t need to suffer the punishment of Hell)
He suffers because of us – because of the garbage we have done.
It is also true that he suffers with us. Literally, the suffering we experience is also felt by him. He knows our suffering from the inside! He is one who has suffered but he also looks at it from the outside – having created it from the start with his higher purposes.
It is incredibly comforting to be with someone who knows what you’re going through.
I also just shared a story illustrating how sometimes suffering is beyond us (we can’t understand it). One day my dog, Sheba, had a run in with a porcupine. When Dad tried to take out the quills Sheba snapped at him. Dad asked if I would try. I took out the quills one by one and Sheba looked at me with her sad eyes asking “why are you hurting me?” I couldn’t explain to her the risk of infection or that if I didn’t take them out she would have even more pain…
If I had reasons for inflicting pain on my dog, how much more might God have his reasons for allowing us to suffer? If my dog could trust me to pull out the porcupine quills, how much more can I trust the creator of the universe in and through the suffering I experience in this short, little life?
I’m his simple, faithful watchdog.