I want to talk about hope for those who have lost loved ones, but if that isn’t you, I want you to pay attention anyway. Sometimes the Lord will give us truth in our life that we store up for another day, sort of like a squirrel saving up for the winter. Store these truths in your heart because it is only a matter of time until a loved one is going to leave this world, and you will need to draw on the hope that God offers.
Practical Principles
- Life is filled with pain, sorrow, and the death of loved ones. Sometimes we live as though we are going to get a free pass on these things, and then they hit us out of the blue. Don’t be shocked when it happens. Jesus warned that we would have tribulation in this world.
- God loves us. Don’t rush over that thought. God loves you very much and you must remember that whatever He allows to happen in your life as His child is motivated by His everlasting love for you.
- Jesus weeps in our time of pain. Jesus was God, but He was also a man, and He identifies with us in our suffering. He feels our pain and sorrows, and when your heart breaks, His does too.
- God can be glorified through human suffering and bring good despite the bad.
Relevant Reminders
- To have hope does not mean that you have a smile permanently plastered on your face. Nor does it mean you will stop feeling pain. Hope and pain can coexist simultaneously in our hearts.
- Sometimes God is glorified through the removal of affliction, and other times He is glorified in our perseverance through the affliction. It is through hardship that we develop hope.
- It’s not wrong to ask why. Jesus Himself asked the question “Why?”
Applicable Actions
Maybe you are facing crisis now. Here is what you need to do. Like Mary and Martha you need to run to God and call out to Him, and bring your pain and sorrow to Him. Jesus is the source of hope and He will meet your need if you come to Him in your weakness.
