Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty! Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee. (“Holy, Holy, Holy,” Heber, R., 1826) If you’re like me, you’ve sung this hymn thousands of times, usually as opening praise in a worship service. The choir processes down the aisle, with all the Read more…
The book of Lamentations is a book of agony and lament. Everything was falling apart as God’s people suffered. In the middle of the writer’s grief and fear, he interrupts his suffering by reminding his soul of an important truth about God: Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness! Read more…
“I’m so stressed out and exhausted.” “The continual challenges and changes overwhelm me.” “The many voices conflict, arguing for their own opinions. Who do I believe and trust anymore?” “The pictures, videos, and clanging words in this world make me feel it’s all sinking sand.” “Changing minds, changing plans, changing Read more…
Do you feel like you’re constantly waiting for God to do something? Does your life feel like one giant waiting game? Suffering requires so much waiting, doesn’t it? My latest round of suffering has brought a newly convicting awareness of my needed mindset shift in the waiting. It started on Read more…
I’ve noticed that the hardest suffering for many women has to do with mothering, in multiple ways. Mothering starts with the anguish of labor, yet it’s mingled with joy (John 16:21). In the sacrificial love required, exhaustion of child-care, and continual seeking of God’s wisdom, we sometimes suffer in mothering Read more…
Do you ever feel Job-like when suffering doesn’t go away? What if they say it’s permanent and incurable? What if God’s answers to our prayers seem to be “no” or “not yet?” Could these situations be God’s leading us to His gentle mercy and compassion for us, as we walk Read more…
In this holiest of weeks, we “survey the wondrous cross on which the Prince of glory died.” I don’t cry often, but in my physical pain a few days ago, I wept when I re-realized how willingly Jesus submitted Himself to immense pain, torturous suffering, and surpassing agonies of complete Read more…
I must confess…there are days when my symptoms scream loudest and groanings of this world feel unbearable, that I can forget how powerful our God is. These are days when, by His always-sufficient grace, His power is made perfect in my very-weak forgetfulness. 2 Corinthians 12:9 is His precious promise Read more…
The news is horrific, isn’t it? Suffering abounds. We’re in agony for many whose daily existence is threatened. We find ourselves praying, “God, please help me as I suffer. Please help our world and Your people.” Who are we praying to, beloved in Christ? Maybe today we need to remember Read more…
Do you find your thoughts drifting into the “what if” zone? They can keep us up at night. The loud voices of the media fuel them. We Google around, looking for possible answers, fretting. Wondering. Trying to take control…again. “What if” thoughts jab our souls when we suffer. We try Read more…
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