9d • General discussion
Suffering does not contradict God’s love
Judges 6:13 ESV
“And Gideon said to him, “Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Miriam.”
It is easy to feel like God has forgotten about me if I am not in the middle of a miracle. If I am not actively feelings God’s presence, that he must have moved on. What this chapter demonstrates is actually the exact opposite. If I notice that so much around me is not right, that could be the sign that it’s on me to step up.
In the middle of Gideon’s weakness and fear is when he was called by God to save His people. Gideon knew how God saved his ancestors from Egypt, but did not understand why God was not currently relieving them from their struggles. He was being prepared for what was next. He will be the instrument for salvation of his people.
Suffering does not contradict God’s love. The feeling of abandonment could mean that what is needed to cure the situation that you find yourself in is already inside of you and is being prepared to come out. If you recognize the problem, maybe you are being called to create the change.
Perhaps it isn’t God that is needed to come down and fix what is going wrong, it is me. He made me and placed me here, why would He not use me right where I am?
I pray for wisdom when looking where I find myself. If I have felt His presence in the past, that proves that Jesus is here for me. If things are going wrong, that does not mean he has moved on or left me; it means that I am being prepared for something greater in comparison to what is currently holding me down. I pray that I can hear when I am called to step up rather than hide in fear of failure. My strength comes after my weakness is discovered.
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Suffering does not contradict God’s love
