Jesus Loves Us
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister
and Lazarus. So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two
more days. – John 11:5-6
When Mary reached the place where Jesus
was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my
brother would not have died.”
– John 11:32
“Jesus loves me! This I know,
For the Bible tells me so;
Little ones to Him belong;
They are weak, but He is strong.”
The words to this song by Anna B. Warner echo in my
mind. So many of us grew up singing this sweet, reassuring verse. “Yes, Jesus
loves me!” That makes everything right in our childhood hearts and minds.
Until we grow up and realize that while Jesus always
loves us, He doesn’t always show up in time to prevent a tragedy. He doesn’t
always protect us from abuse or death or homelessness. Jesus loves us but sometimes
He allows us to suffer.
We know this story of Lazarus. We know that Jesus used
his friend’s death to show the glory of God. And we know that when Jesus does
arrive, He weeps with his friends and then calls Lazarus from the tomb. We know
that belief in Jesus means we will never truly die. But, oh, how death can
hurt!
The hardest part of faith is remaining strong when you
know that Jesus could prevent something awful and, yet, He doesn’t. The most
difficult part of faith is knowing that Jesus can heal, knowing He will heal,
but facing the deep truth that sometimes healing takes place in heaven and not
on this earth.
The news tells us that it was such a tragedy. A man
shot and killed his wife and one of his daughters. He shot another two
daughters while still another fled for her life. Then he started a fire that destroyed
their home and killed himself. Drugs, they say. A divorce petition and a
custody filing. Not on the “other” side of town. A family just like ours. How
can it be? How can Jesus allow something so horrible to happen? And, yet, He
does.
You’re probably thinking I’m going to give you wisdom
or advice, explain the unexplainable, or, at least, help us make sense of it
all. I’m not. I don’t understand. We live in a fallen world. It’s a trite truth
but a truth still the same. Jesus can step in at any moment and prevent tragedy
but usually He allows it to play out. One person’s demons destroys a family and
scars his children forever. Because how do you “get over” having a parent try
to kill you? How do you deal with the loss of a Mother and a sister? You don’t.
Jesus never said life would be easy. In fact, He said
we’d have troubles. He never said He’d protect us from the tragedies and hurts
of this world. What He did say is that He’d never leave us alone. He promised
to walk with us, to guide us, to turn bad into something good if we’d only give
it to Him.
We shout at Him in anger and anguish, with a
brokenness that can only come from deep sorrow. We know, like Martha, if He’d
only come sooner it would all have ended differently. But, you see, one day it
will end differently.
Death doesn’t have the final say. Darkness lost the
war. While troubles may cause us to falter and stumble on this earth, we’re
only passing through to another destination. We’re headed to a place where drug
abuse and cancer and divorce and death don’t exist. We’re on a journey home.
So when life overwhelms you and your shattered heart
cries out for relief, focus your eyes on the light. That’s Jesus. Look neither
to the right nor to the left. Stay focused. “Jesus loves you! This I know.” And
He also keeps His promises. He never leaves us alone. We may not be strong, but
He is. And some days that is the anchor that keeps us upright in the storm.
