An Eternal Weight of Gloryfeatured
Hello friends and neighbors of the Rio Grande Valley!
Those of us that believe in the Lord Jesus and love Him know that one of the main reasons why people don’t believe in God is because there is so much suffering in the world. Sometimes they wonder, “If God is all powerful and loving, why doesn’t He simply stop all the suffering?” And they conclude, “He is either not powerful enough or not loving, or both.” This is a question that has been explored by philosophers and theologians for millennia, and in this blog I’d like to share a few reflections about this theme.
A suffering believer who loves Jesus Christ
For purposes of keeping this patient anonymous, I’ll refer to her as “Ms. Perez”, who I recently met at the clinic I work. The Lord touched me through this 71 year old Hispanic lady who lives alone and has never been married nor had any children. Unfortunately, she suffers from congestive heart failure (a weak heart), diabetes mellitus, and a really bad kidney function; she also has neuropathy (nerve damage) to her legs and arthritis to her back and knees, making it very difficult for her to walk. She also has very few teeth and molars left. Thankfully, she has a provider that goes to her house a few hours a day to help her out.
Of course, different specialists and I are closely monitoring her multiple medical conditions, but I confess that during my first appointment with her I was inwardly praying for her as there’s only so much we can do for her at this stage of her life with all her different medical problems.
I deeply admire and love the fact that she loves the Lord Jesus. Her daily suffering is no impediment to her nightly prayer life.
Many times at night she prays, “God, help me deal with my pain and suffering.” Note that her pain is not just physical, but emotional, due to her loneliness and depression.
I firmly believe that God is sustaining her, gaining her, and adding Himself more to her through her pain. Ms. Perez’s life is an anti-testimony to the of vanity of the world, where the main concern is getting bigger, faster, shinier, and newer things.
Ms. Perez reminds me of the verse:
“Therefore we do not lose heart; but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For our momentary lightness of affliction works out for us, more and more surpassingly, an eternal weight of glory, because we do not regard the things which are seen but the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18).
Suffering in the RGV
There are so many RGV people that have lost a dear one due to a traumatic life event such as cancer, COVID-19, a car accident, or different medical conditions. Mental and emotional pain due to isolation, neglect, and unforgiven offenses, also cause just as much if not more suffering.
There’s absolutely no counseling, anti-depressant or any other intervention that will take away pain from the loss of a loved one or from being in isolation. Sure, medicine can help a bit or even numb you up, but it won’t heal you.
I want to let you know that the Lord Jesus is near. He is in your heart, and all you have to do is call upon Him, and He promises: “I will never forsake you or abandon you” (Deuteronomy 31:6).
I encourage you to “draw water with rejoicing from the spring of salvation… call upon His name” (Isaiah 12:3-4)! If you are currently in pain or isolation, then I encourage you to invite the Lord Jesus into whatever situation you are going through. You are not alone. You are a member of the Body of Christ, His church!
The Lord Jesus was “a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief” (Isaiah 53:3), and He understands us perfectly.
An Interesting Observation
As someone who is frequently in contact with suffering and pain, I’d like to share with you the following observation which I hope will encourage you to continue to follow the Lord, or get to know Him if you haven’t met Jesus yet:
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- My older patients that are believers seem more content with their lives, with their spouses, with their accomplishments or lack thereof. They, for the most part, are less worried about their medical conditions. They have no fear of dying.
- My older patients that do not have Christ in their hearts are generally more bitter about things that occurred years and even decades ago, and are more preoccupied about their bodies aging. They tend to have a fear of dying.
Eternal Human Souls
As souls conceived and created by God since eternity past, we are now going through a human experience. Our earthly existence, with the pain and suffering that we go through, as we know it is but a glimpse compared to the glory that awaits us for eternity with our Lord Jesus. Amen.
I praise the Lord Jesus that in His own time, He intends to do away with all the suffering in the world. Because of sin which has entered into the world, this has led to so much chaos, confusion, and suffering in the world. But we should be encouraged that “all things work together for good to those who love God” (Roman 8:28). We may not understand the many things that happen in our world or why He allows them to happen, but in due time, many things will become clear.
Our great and marvelous God is available anytime we call upon Him, ready to join us in our suffering, and guess what? He is still worthy to be praised even in our sufferings!
Thank you for reading this blog, and may God bless you and keep you.
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