Cancer, Hope, Loss, Who Am I Now, Words of Endurance
God Understands
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows.
Isaiah 53:3-4
In our most desperate moments, when our losses feel overwhelming and inconsolable, there is nothing more precious than being with someone with who we can identify. I can still envision the close companionship my aunt and brother-in-law shared at a family gathering. They had met only once, years before, so I didn’t expect them to become such fast friends. But they were the only people in that room who were battling cancer, and they shared a bond that the rest of us could only imagine. They walked the same valley, understood each other’s pain. No one else could hold a candle to the encouragement they gave and received from one another.
We, too, have Someone who has walked the same valley we have. God is intimately acquainted with the landscape of our suffering. He needs no explanation of our hurt, desperation, or fear. He has felt the dust of earth’s deep valleys on his feet. He has felt in His heart the pain of great loss and suffering.
- He understands the loss of dignity. He left Heaven’s glory for a small-town stable.
- He understands the loss of position. He left Heaven’s throne to become one of His own creation.
- He understands teh loss of credibility. His own family didn’t believe His claims.
- He understands the loss of honor and respect. The religious leaders who claimed to follow God despised Him and even plotted to destroy Him.
- He understands the loss of vitality and strength. Weakened by the most brutal torture, someone else had to carry His cross to Golgotha.
- He understands the loss of relationships. In Him most desperate hour, all of His friends on earth abandoned Him.
God completely understands the losses of our suffering. He understands them perfectly not only because He is all knowing but because He has experienced them personally. No one can ever understand us better.
