But God: The Power of Hope When Catastrophe Crashes InSample

Many American Christians want life to be easy. We want lives of calm, soaking in His glory, enjoying every day until we are called home. But God doesn’t necessarily call us to a life of ease. In the book of Matthew, Jesus explains that we must take the narrow road and enter through the narrow gate. The wider road, the one that is easiest to travel, is the road that leads to destruction. We want the wide road to lead to life, but it is the narrow road that leads to peace and life because that is where we meet God. The family room in the ER, the waiting room in the ICU, and the springy bed in the hospital apartment have all been stops on our narrow road. And it was on that narrow road, time and time again, when Emily and I showed up for each other and God showed up for us.

The beauty of our suffering—especially in friendship, family, and marriage—is the complexity it brings to relationship. When suffering enters the picture, we must bind together and find strength we didn’t know we had. When one is weak, the others must be strong. Not only have I experienced this with Emily, but also with my children. In many ways, we feel like God called our family to suffer. Even though we’ve all had moments when we’ve wanted to collapse, we never want to waste our suffering. We want to use our suffering for the glory of God because so many people need that encouragement in their own suffering. No matter what, God meets us in our struggle and carries us all the way home. Life here on earth is simply a journey of faith, trust, and infinite growth. We are passing through, but we are not home yet.

Prayer

Father, please help me see the beauty in my suffering and how You are walking with me through it. Amen.