I have been under the impression lately that some people are indeed suffering. People who have been dealing with some challenge for a long time and don’t know how to get through it. Many pray and plead intensely, but nothing happens.

Then I get it that people give up. Yes, it’s understandable that people then give up hope in God and throw their faith in Him out the door.

I wrote a piece titled: “Friend, God will not abandon you”. In response, I got this raw, honest email from John (not his real name):

 Are you telling me god will never drop me? My whole life is evidence of how the lord does exactly the opposite of what I beg, pray, fast and cry to him. He does nothing except destroy.

The bible speaks of him as a loving god and that he loves you and will do what you ask of him, but he simply stands and watches my life being ruined. While I’m praying and begging my ass off.

And what do I get? Exactly the opposite of what I’m asking. So no, god will definitely drop you. I’m proof of that.

I wonder how I would’ve handled it if I were in John’s shoes. Would I also have written God’s name in lowercase letters? In the end, would I also have arrived at that godforsaken place where I would’ve believed He had dropped me?

How does one respond to this? What does one do? Apply a plaster that’s too small?

I suggest that when all else fails, we look at how others have done it. We should read the stories in the Old Testament again: ¹⁰… and never once quit, all the time honoring God. What a gift life is to those who stay the course! ¹¹You’ve heard, of course, of Job’s staying power, and you know how God brought it all together for him at the end. That’s because God cares, cares right down to the last detail.

We all know Job. I don’t think a person could be tortured worse than Job. He literally lost everything. His family, his friends, his animals, his possessions and even his health. He wrestled intensely with God. And yet, in a way, he continued to cling to his faith.

And what did God do? He gave Job double what he initially had.

Yet, we do not understand everything. We do not understand why God allowed the devil to crush Job like that. But we know that out of love, God gave Job much more than he had initially.

Whether this piece will motivate John to keep going and hold on and keep waiting for God to show up, I don’t know. Whether it might help you in your struggle, I know even less. Still, I will keep looking back at the people who went before me and those presently around me who hold on through the hardships. I’ll hold on because, really, that’s all I’ve got.

Scripture
James 5:7-12

Reflection
Do you also sometimes write God’s name in lowercase letters?
Or rather, are you also sometimes just getting discouraged?
Can you then look at others and still believe?

Prayer
Father, sometimes I sit in a hole and wonder if You still think of me. Yet, I continue to believe, even though I can’t see You in my life. Help me never to lose my faith. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.