Where was God when I needed Him?

The distraught family grieves a lost loved one, the pregnant mother miscarries a much wanted baby, the parent of a wayward child watches his child serve time for a crime committed, and the divorcee sees her family torn apart. All are hurting, all have cried out to God, some believed that God would heal, or save, and they now ask “Why?” All the while, a loving God grieves with them, reaches out to them and longs to comfort them. He longs to draw them near, to give them understanding. God does not force his love, but quietly waits. He does not try to justify his actions, He listens to the hurt hurled accusations and blame, yet keeps on reaching out. Such is our God, the God of relationship, who chooses to call us his friend. His heart is that of a loving father, who longs to give us comfort and understanding, yet whose ways and thoughts are higher than ours (Isaiah 55: 8 -9).

As time rolls on, we begin to see God’s higher purpose and that very thing we blamed God for, in wisdom, we now thank him for. We begin to understand that God saw the big picture and did answer our prayers, just not in the way we expected. So often, it is not the life wrenching experience we grappled with that makes or breaks us, but it is our response to God in our suffering that becomes the strength of our life. Through it all, God chooses to listen to us, to allow us to pour out our anguish and when we have spent it all on him, then he speaks and we know we have heard him. His voice becomes our comfort and an anchor in our lives(2 Corinthians1:3-4). His love is an extravagant love that knows no boundaries; his love knows no end.

In our hardship we have a choice as to how we will respond. We can cry out to God for understanding, or we can blame God and walk away! Both responses are very real, but one leads to life and the other to death. To cry out in frustration and to seek answers opens the door to understanding, while the one who blames God, does not listen and chooses to walk away, opens the door to resentment, lies, and spiritual death. In my lifetime, I have met both. I have seen the one who was hurt (yet kept on searching for answers) become free, and through his testimony release that freedom to others. I have also seen the one who blamed God (who closed the door to understanding), become bitter and bound up in hatred, affecting everything he touched with that same spirit. The heart of God is unconditional and he reaches out to both. He longs to reconcile all men to himself; his arms are opened wide and he is waiting.

May our gift to God this season be to open our hearts and lives to him, and to share his love with others. Because actions speak louder than words, pray for those around you who are hurting. Ask God what He wants you to do, so that they can know his love, his peace and his comfort. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4 NIV).

Remember, as we spend more and more time with Jesus, our confidence in recognizing His voice becomes easier; … the voice of a friend.