When Hope Hurts

             The proverbial light at the end of the tunnel increased in brightness. Hope gradually increased in anticipation of finally being healed and delivered after years of horrendous suffering. But alas! Just when the light seemed to be the brightest, the light died. Darkness eclipsed light. Life returned to its customary condition – being in darkness – filled with pain and misery.

            This could be the plight of a person physically ailing for years. The ailing soul’s hope could have been greatly increased when the surgeon assured healing through a final surgery. Alas, that surgery failed too. Suffering in ailment became the typical condition for this soul.

            Hope, which was as bright as a full moon’s light, was brutally eclipsed by evil’s shadow.

            This could be the plight of a jobless soul whose latest endeavor may have offered the greatest hope and then his hope was brutally nuked when the greatest prospect of reemployment deluded him again.  

            This could be the plight of numerous individuals and families living in utter misery and pain.

            Hope loomed large, and then suddenly, when hope disappeared, hopelessness became a constant companion to the suffering soul.

            There are instances when the word hope may appear to be the greatest cuss word in the dictionary of one’s life. This would certainly resonate with those living in utter misery for years together.

            This is not to say that those living under such despicable circumstances rebel against God. No, that’s not the case always.

            In fact, those living in utter misery could be devoted disciples of the Lord Jesus because of their constant dependence on HIM and HIM alone.  

            But when it comes to hope, they could choose to be pessimistic rather than being optimistic. Does this mean they lack faith that God would deliver them from their horrendous misery? That’s an incorrect understanding of a suffering soul as well.

            In order to understand the faith of the one who is in utter pain for several years/decades, watch out for the peace that remains in him (cf. Romans 8:6). If the person in pain has the peace of God both inside and outside his home, then his faith is in the right place – in the Lord Jesus.

            Even if the suffering soul is unhappy, irritable, angry, and reclusive, do not misjudge them. Their faith in Christ could still be strong, but they may genuinely be angry with their fellow Christians, who may have abandoned the suffering soul.

            These children of God may have lost their faith in their fellow Christians, but not their faith in the Triune God.

            So would a suffering soul, after years of suffering, lose faith? Would they believe that God would not deliver them?

            They could very well believe that it may not be in God’s will to deliver them. Christ did not heal every sick person at the pool called Bethesda, HE healed only one. Thus they know that it is not God’s bounden prerogative to save and heal any and everyone.

            If it is God’s bounden prerogative to heal and save everyone, people would flock to God for material benefits such as health, wealth, sanity, and success. But God will not grant material blessings to everyone seeking them. In fact, the Bible teaches that we are to primarily seek the spiritual. When we seek the spiritual, the material blessings will follow (cf. Matthew 6:33).

            Is it possible to pray for healing, but not hope for healing? If an ailing person does not hope for healing, then does it allude to his faithlessness?

            Job remarked that he does not have the strength to hope (Job 6:11). It is true! The suffering soul needs strength to hope, but when their mind loses its strength, then their hope begins to fade. However, their prayers need not cease.

            For years, these suffering souls would have hoped and longed for healing and deliverance. But all the years of hoping would have been in vain.

            It is one thing to hope for healing and not to receive healing. But it could be catastrophic to hope for healing but only to receive greater adversity. When you hope for suffering to cease, you are not in the frame of mind to receive more pain and misery. It is at this very moment that hope hurts.

            Job experienced this situation, so he groaned, “Yet when I hoped for good, evil came; when I looked for light, then came darkness. The churning inside me never stops; days of suffering confront me.” (Job 30:26-27, NIV).

            When we experience such a situation we tend to think that God allows a situation wherein our hope could be uprooted. Job said, “He tears me down on every side till I am gone; he uproots my hope like a tree.” (Job 19:10, NIV; cf. Job 14:19).

            You will understand this only if you have experienced horrendous suffering for years together. Only then would you empathize with Job’s words, ““My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, and they come to an end without hope…” (Job 7:6, NIV).

            There are situations when hope could hurt us!

            Hope that God would deliver us may fade from our lives, but the faith in God’s existence and HIS power will remain. We learn this from Job’s life when he uttered these glorious words while in utmost suffering, “I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!” (Job 19:25-27, NIV).

            Are the Christian churches geared to minister to these suffering souls? You know the answer.

            I am moderately pessimistic.

            Churches may disappoint us, but the Lord Jesus never would. Run into HIS outstretched arms. You will receive divine comfort and peace (Matthew 11:28).

            When you encounter a suffering soul, do not judge. Rather prayerfully encourage and comfort the individual and the family in Christ. Amen.

Trust and Hope in Suffering

The explosions in Texas and Boston, and the earthquake at the Pak-Iran border this week, have changed the lives of the victims and their families. The measure of pain they undergo is unimaginable. Loss of human and material significance inflicts physical pain and emotional turmoil that robs the victim of peace, joy, love and contentment from his life.

Suffering inflicts an irreversible change, but not irreparable. We will not regain the loved one whom we lost, or the lost vigor of an injured organ of our body, or even our shattered material belongings. These are irreversible changes. But there is a way to find peace, joy, love and contentment through suffering. That way is through the life giving presence of our Lord Jesus Christ.

‘Peace’ is a foundational necessity in pain. It is natural to lose peace when we encounter pain. Peacelessness yields worry/anxiety, bitterness, anger and the likes. It entails confusion and disorder, which darkens the mind into taking erroneous decisions. When there is peace, ‘worry’ or ‘confusion’ is crushed. Peace paves way to joy, love, and contentment.

However, it is typical for a Christian to go through moments of worry/anxiety, bitterness, anger and the likes, during his suffering. But he should never let these emotions gain control of his life; thus destroy his inner peace and intimacy with God.

Foundational to ‘peace’ is ‘trust.’ If a Christian is to be at peace with God, then he ought to trust in HIM. The same concept is true for human relationships. Trust or belief or faith is the core essence of any relationship, so it is with Christianity. Our total trust should always be on God; this effectively eliminates a conflicting trust in our own ability (Proverbs 3:5). In the relationship between God and man, ‘trust’ is always unidirectional – God-ward (man to God) – and unconditional. A Christian should trust God in joy and sorrow, in health and sickness, for better or for worse. He should trust in God’s love and goodness.

Trust is demonstrated appropriately when a Christian surrenders his life into the hands of a good and a loving God. Such a trust is depicted in the instance where the Apostle Paul says he no longer lives but Christ lives in him, and the life he lives is by faith in God (Galatians 2:20).

In summary thus far:

1. A Christian totally trusts in God or he ought to totally trust in         God.

2. His trust in God is demonstrated by his surrender to God.

3. When his life is surrendered to God, he is able to enjoy God’s blessings (one of which is peace.) The extent of his surrender to God determines the extent to which he enjoys his spiritual blessings from God. In other words, the extent of a Christian’s growth in the Lord will determine the extent of his stability in the Lord through prosperity or adversity.

Our existential dilemma is that our ‘trust’ in God stumbles upon obstacles! There are moments in suffering when we are pushed beyond our limits. Then we question God. There is nothing unusual or incorrect about questioning God. But the unusual and incorrect response is when our trust in God decreases during suffering.

The book of Lamentations offers us a useful insight. Even though Lamentations is poetic and the context is divine retribution over the sinful Judah and Jerusalem, the cries of the lamenter’s heart are vividly portrayed. He lamented about his unparalleled suffering (1:12), his defeat in the hands of evil (1:14), the desertion of human comfort (1:16), so much so he compares God to his enemy (2:5)! His wailing climaxed in chapter 3. In verses 17 to 19, he lamented about deprivation of peace, amnesia of prosperity and hope in the Lord, and his soul’s depression. He seemed lost, lonely and hopeless. However, he did not lose his trust in God.  

In chapters 1 and 2 he recalled God’s goodness during his laments – HIS righteousness (1:18), and HIS justice and promise (2:17). Through his laments he remembered his righteous God.

The lamenter turned a new page in verse 21 of the third chapter – his laments transform into hope in God. He rediscovered ‘hope’ when he recalled God’s love (v22), compassion (v22), faithfulness (v23), and goodness (v25). Yes, this is the same Lord whom he compared to an enemy! But now, he realized his hope in the Lord. How wonderful are his words (Lamentations 3: 21-26, NIV):

Yet this I call to mind

    and therefore I have hope:

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,

    for his compassions never fail.

They are new every morning;

    great is your faithfulness.

I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;

    therefore I will wait for him.”

The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,

    to the one who seeks him;

it is good to wait quietly

    for the salvation of the Lord.

If ‘trust’ seems to take a beating, ‘hope’ should come out firing. What better than to hope in the Lord when we recall HIS blessings in our past? Let us not forget the blessings we enjoyed from the Lord. HE will never leave or forsake us. HE is there with us, HE will guide us through our sufferings, HE will offer us HIS peace, and HE will heal and deliver us. “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you” (Deuteronomy 31:6, NIV).

Are we in immeasurable pain? Let us relate ourselves to the author of Lamentations. He was in immeasurable pain. But he recalled God’s blessings, which leads him to place his trust and hope in God. Similarly let us recall God’s blessings of our past, and trust and hope in God and his unfailing love for our present and future.

For no one is cast off

    by the Lord forever.

Though he brings grief, he will show compassion,

    so great is his unfailing love. (Lamentations 3:31-32, NIV).

            Amen. 

If God is NOT in Suffering

Let us think on the entailment of Godlessness in human suffering. What are my legitimate options if I am unable to believe in God during times of suffering? I use the word ‘unable’ to emphasize the overwhelming pain of the suffering heart. We should positively sympathize with those struggling to decrypt God’s presence in times of (arduous) suffering. Those who succumb to the incredible pain caused by their suffering, deny God’s existence.

            If man replaces God, then suffering is caused by mankind. Poverty, I postulate, is an imbalance in the distribution of financial resources, due to greed. The haves turn a blind eye to the have-nots. The poor shrink and the rich bloat. This is a tenable proposition. Again, if starvation is an outcome of the barrenness of land due to lack of rain, then one can posit concretization (building of concrete jungles) through deforestation as a plausible cause. This too is tenable.

            Man ought to be the cause behind a baby with birth defects due to parental negligence or an untimely death because of a drunken driver. These evils could be attributed to him exercising his freewill. But what is he free from? If someone is “free,” then we posit a restraining power. A young man may want freedom from his parent or a slave may want freedom from his oppressor. The parent and the oppressor are the restraining powers.

What do these powers restrain a man from? Parents restrain a child from being bad (which is good). An oppressor restrains the slave from escaping (which is bad). Hence, the restraints could be either good or bad. Man can choose to be free from either good or bad. Thus, a “free” man can liberate himself from good or bad.

            The moment we bring concepts such as ‘bad’ and ‘good’ (morality) into our domain, we should explain its cause. Who framed these moral laws? Since our postulation is Godlessness, society (man) frames its own moral laws. But one society executes convicts for armed robbery, whereas another imposes a lesser punishment. We need to decide which of these societies is right or wrong.

So we arrive at the realm of arbitration. A society sets up objective units to arbitrate opposing contentions. These objective units determine the innocent, the criminal, the winners, and the losers. Even in villages (where literacy is rare), a village council comprising of mature and credible people is established as an objective arbitrative unit. When man seeks justice/truth, he approaches the objective authority, whose sole purpose is to establish truth through impartial justice.

            This objective arbitrative unit ought to be a transcending authority. Primarily, it should transcend the contending parties, without sympathizing with either. But man is a vulnerable being. So the transcending authority need not be absolutely transcending, for it could fail to transcend corruption.

            When a man depends on his fellow being for justice, especially with the prevailing corruption, one can reasonably posit that justice need not be rendered to every individual. Justice often marries power, position, and prominence, leaving the poor and powerless divorced from justice.

Here the aspect of “Hope” needs to be considered if mankind is robbed of justice from fellow man. When one is at the receiving end of injustice, should he live with hope to receive justice one day, or should he be hopeless? When a man fails to receive justice, what is his assurance to receive justice later? When corruption is in full force, justice from a fellow man is not an optimistic anticipation, especially if he is poor and powerless. When man replaces God, hopelessness prevails.

            With man at the helm of affairs, justice and hope are uncertain. With God at the helm of affairs, there is justice and hope. This hope is an eternal hope where evil will be punished and righteous will be saved to coexist with God unto eternity (Revelation 20ff). If the Lord so ordains that I do not receive justice in this time and age (Cf. Hebrews11:35b-40), I am certain of receiving justice when HE comes in all HIS glory to judge mankind.

           

            Until now we hypothetically removed God from the helm and replaced HIM with man. Then we examined the situation to ascertain if man’s replacement of God answers questions related to suffering. The situation of suffering with man at the helm is worse. If I depend on man, then I am hopeless and robbed of justice. Hopelessness with man also posits that man is not “free” but is under the control of evil.

            There is a sense of duplicity in those who reject God (a transcending, objective, Almighty reality) but accept the presence of objective arbitrative units of men. On one hand, they reject God because of HIS supposed partiality (HE provides good to some and not to all), and impotency (HE fails to eliminate evil), but on the other hand they accept a man who is worse than God – partial, impotent, and susceptible to corruption. Those who are disappointed in God should also be disappointed with man (even with themselves!). Significantly, there is hope with God but only hopelessness with man.

            If we replace God with anything inanimate (chance), then the situation gets even worse. We are left with more holes and questions – the situation becomes more unstable and untenable. If God is at the helm, then God decides the birth of every man. If man rejects God, then his birth is a chance occurrence. When ‘chance’ rapes a man, he is abandoned into brutal obscurity, humiliation and indignity that he remains idiotically ignorant of the cause for his malady. This is a situation of greater hopelessness and indignity. This is a horrendous evil.

            It has already been emphasized that man can decide to liberate himself from good or bad. We have the intrinsic freedom to liberate ourselves from God or the devil. When we liberate from God, we fall prey (even innocently and ignorantly) to the schemes of the devil. A deluded man falls prey to the devil’s schemes. God gives man many chances to seek HIM, love HIM, and obey HIM willingly and lovingly. It is my prayer that we do not fall into the hands of the evil one, but willingly and lovingly fall into the loving and nail pierced hands of the Almighty God.

            Christ in us is the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27). Without Christ, we are hopeless. I therefore submit that suffering is more understandable and explainable with God. Amen.

Summary:

If man replaces God:

            Suffering caused by ‘man’ or ‘chance’

                       

If suffering caused by man, then Man is “free.”

                                    A ‘free’ man can liberate himself from ‘good’ or ‘evil’ (morality).

Man frames moral laws to establish justice/good (since God is replaced by man).

Man arbitrates/judges to ensure fairness/good (man sets up objective authority akin God)

Arbitration should absolutely transcend, but does not, for man is vulnerable (corrupt). So, man is unable to liberate himself from evil.

                       

Justice unrendered to man, since man unable to liberate himself from evil.

When justice is unrendered, man is HOPELESS, evil prevails, ‘good’ is nonexistent/partial.

Because justice and hope are consistently non-existent/partial, man is not ‘free,’ but is under the control of evil.

Therefore, when man rejects God, he is under the control   of evil.

                        If suffering is a ‘chance’ occurrence

           

Man is so hopeless that he cannot seek anyone or anything for answers. Man is robbed of dignity completely.

This is a horrendous evil, so evil prevails.

                       

If man replaces God, evil prevails, man is under the control of evil.

                       

Fallacies:

Man sets up an objective authority to establish justice/good, but rejects a good and a just God who is an objective authority. (Man does not want to yield control to God.)

Because of corruption/evil, man fails to provide justice consistently. (But he rejected God for the same reason - not providing justice consistently.)