When we live with our eyes trained on suffering, our lives become laden with despair. We may become convinced we have nothing to live for. But when we train our eyes beyond, we see there is so much more.
Photo Credit: Free photo: Valley, View, Landscape, Vegetation – Free Image on …
we see a dim reflection
this side of eternity
the knotted imperfection
of an unfinished tapestry
creation’s artist sees a masterpiece
wisdom weaving its design
everything made beautiful
in its perfect time
poetry by j.e. fernandez
Photo Credit: weaving hands | on a loom in the iron age | Hans Splinter | Flickr
I recently attended a birthday party where my kids received tokens to play games for which they could win tickets. After depleting their supply of tokens, they took their tickets to the exchange counter, hearts hopeful their few hours of play would earn a decent prize. With expectancy in their eyes, they gazed up at the toys, games, and oversized stuffed animals looming before them.
How disappointing when the desk clerk re-directed their gaze to the sparse supply of mini-candies behind the glass counter. Yes, 1,000 tickets would earn a prize. Three bite-sized candies.
At least my kids are easily contented enough to be satisfied with a night of fun and a few chocolates. But I’ll have to admit, my calculations of token cost to ticket wins to actual prize results left me doubtful I’d return to that venue apart from another party invitation. All that work earning tickets failed to yield a worthy result.
It got me thinking of another promise of a greater exchange: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). Here, we are told that ALL THINGS will be used for good by the God whom we love. The blessed. The bad. The painful. The tear-rending. ALL will one day be redeemed. ALL will be used for good.
And we will not be disappointed.
God makes good on his promises. He will not give us a handful of candy in exchange for our trials. One day, whether here on earth or in the glory of heaven, we will see. God, the master designer, weaves good from every thread of pain wrought on this earth. That’s what makes him God.
He alone is able to redeem the worst of circumstances to bring forth something beautiful.
A precious woman named Corrie ten Boom endured the deepest of hells in a World War II concentration camp. After losing her Father and her sister to the ravages of suffering, she was able to stand and say, “There is no pit so deep that God’s love is not deeper still.” I can’t imagine coming through such horrors with confident assurance of God’s goodness. Yet Corrie knew that somehow, in some way, all her suffering would yield a greater return both here and in the age to come.
We may think that all the suffering life brings is reason enough to end our own. But the knowledge that we have a God who is able to bring beauty from ashes, joy from tears, and praise from despair is reason enough to live.
Now my kids’ short-lived disappointment in getting a less-than-expected prize is nothing compared to the disappointment many of us have experienced in life. But it serves as a timely reminder that IN GOD’S HANDS, nothing is wasted. He will exchange all our suffering for something good. We can’t see it now, but one day, we will see. And it’s gonna be worth it.
Photo Credit: Caves Background 1 Free Stock Photo – Public Domain Pictures
why the hunger and the thirst,
why the war and death and grief?
why the sickness with no cure
and the pain with no relief?
why the child without a home
and the outcast with no friend?
why the family without hope
and the suffering without end?
why the questions without answers
and the life that ends too soon?
what’s the purpose for this madness
God, dare i question you?
when will you enter in?
will you ever intervene?
can’t you simply lift your hand
to end this suffering?
and yet, you turn to me
a question for my ears…
do i not realize
i can answer my own prayers?
can i not lift my hands
to heal the hurt i see?
can i not enter in,
can i not intervene?
you suffered on the cross
and bore our every pain
then gave to us the work
told us go do the same
and i’m beginning now to see
that the answer lies with me
the things i’ve left undone
the pain that i’ve refused to see
the cries that i’ve ignored
the lives that i’ve betrayed
by turning from their eyes
choosing numbness over pain
how can i question God?
how can i complain?
i cast on him the blame
when it is i who bear the shame
poem copyright Jenna Fernandez
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
Photo Credit: Free photo: Sunset, Sea, Ocean, Water, Sun – Free Image on Pixabay …
what am i here for
if not to be
more than a shell
that moves and breathes
more than an empty
lifeless corpse
existing, untouched
unscathed, unhurt
what am i here for
if not to touch
the thorns of life
the sting of love
to see the flower
blossom, grow
then wither, fade
in winter’s snow
what am i here for
if not to taste
joy and sorrow
pleasure, pain
to feel the breath
of summer’s sun
yet when it burns
refuse to run
what am i here for
if not to hold
the warmth of life
‘til it grows cold
to walk in suffering’s
weary shoes
to cherish scars
to win, to lose
what am I here for
beyond this life
wrought with toil
and bitter strife
beyond myself
beyond my needs
beyond my loss
beyond my greed
what am i here for
if not to live
for more than what
this earth can give
more than the dreams
of mortal man
could ever place
within my hands
Source: Living with Legacy in Mind
Photo Credit: Walking – Free images on Pixabay
though earth give way
and mountains shall crumble
and all that we’ve trusted
one day will fail
the curtain’s been torn
between light and darkness
and in the end, light
will always prevail
Source: Where Are You God?
Photo Credit: File:Curtain of Water.JPG – Wikimedia Commons
This Life & Beyond 
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