The Proverbs wisely teach us that the plans of a man’s heart are many but the Lord directs his steps. There are many proverbs that teach this wisdom. We are also warned in this same book that there is a way that seems right unto a man but the end thereof are the ways of death. Another profound question of the same book ponders this truth, “a man’s goings are of the Lord, how then can a man understand his way?” God has lessons to teach us and often they come into our lives disguised as troubles, sorrows and loss. Some we endure, inflicted upon us without warning. Those little troubles that, as the spark flies upward, Job spoke of, inherently bestowed upon every man. Then there are those trials, those lessons in life that the Lord teaches us that are designed to bring us to a place that we would not dare to tread were it not for His sovereign plan leading us, pointing us to truths in life that we would rather not learn. We would not learn these truths any other way, and they must be taught through the teacher of tears and pain. God is often not in a hurry to teach these lessons. He is not given over to the instant gratification our society dictates. He rather takes His time, slowly and patiently showing us truth, if we will have the appetite to receive it. Great loss is often one of His choice methods in bringing to light the beautiful fruit He so desires to produce in our lives. One of the most precious and exquisite flowers which blooms from the trauma of acute loss is the spirit of strength we did not know we could experience, the dignity amidst great insult or injury, and the gratefulness that is cultivated in the barren soil of pain. Have you ever known someone who lost their most precious loved one, a husband, or a parent, perhaps a child? When such a tragedy occurs in the life of someone we know, we respond often times in shock and tremendous compassion, wondering how the bereft loved one will carry on, their very lives having been shaken to the core by such devastation. Yet the most beautiful picture emerges in time in the lives of those whose faith has not been shattered by such calamity and whose captain is the Lord. You one day see in their lives, the smile, the softness, the reality of having weathered the fiercest storm in the mind’s imagination and coming out of it on the other side, better? Yes, better! Better than they were. Not only are they better for having been through such a difficult loss or trial in life but they are real in a way that they never could be before. Real in a way that catches our attention and makes us think. Wow. We really think when we behold these shining stars of truth. They make us think about what really matters in this life. Love. Love really matters. Loving each other. Being grateful. Not being perfect or having it all together and yet being okay. Their message is, “look at me, I’ve been through the fire and I am still here, and God is taking care of me and He loves me. Especially when such trophies of His grace are marked by a lack of bitterness, their testimonies become powerful, beautiful and life changing. Poignant and profound is their life message and they exude a certain glory of God, if they respond in the way He desires. They become some of His most effective tools in conveying who He is, His power, His sovereignty, His mercy, His grace. The very pain and loss they experienced testifies of the reality of God for He is no stranger to pain and sorrow. “For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake ” Phillipians 1:29.
Are you suffering today? Has the Lord led you to a place of loss or sorrow? Could it be that He desires to create in your life the beautiful fruit of His grace, to communicate to others the hope He has for all of us?
Sarah Hopkins Art 