Hug the Cactus

Several months ago, I could not have imagined that 2020 would bring a worldwide pandemic, nationwide civil unrest, political polarization and serious economic concerns. Many believe the world is the worst it has ever been. And yet, one look through the Bible demonstrates to us that none of this is new. Each generation has suffered through wars, natural disasters, poverty, disease, death, and family disputes. Yet our culture has taught us to seek comfort and pleasure while avoiding anything that might bring discomfort, trouble, pain or suffering.

Many people who come to the Refuge ask, “If God is loving and all powerful, why doesn’t he do something?” or “Why does he allow all this suffering to go on?” Not surprisingly, these same questions have been considered throughout history. From the Bible we learn that suffering is part of the human experience, even the Christian life.

“It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.” (Ps 119:71)

“For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly.” (1 Peter 2:19)

“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)

“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” (1 Peter 4:12-13)

“For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
(2 Corinthians 12:10)

We believe in and worship a God who knows and understands what it means to suffer and so we point people to the cross. In his book, “Walking with God Through Pain and Suffering,” Tim Keller writes: “The cross is a remarkable way to deal with suffering. Without a suffering God, it is harder to treat suffering as real…. The story of the cross takes evil and loss so very seriously, showing that it is a problem, somehow, even for God. It cannot simply be removed with a wave of (even a) divine hand. It cannot be overcome through ‘mind over matter’ as in an Eastern [religious] way. Yet the cross shows that God will not be defeated by evil and pain, because in the Christian story, Jesus does not save us despite evil and pain but through it. The saving grace of God ‘takes up’ even the cross into the joy of the resurrection and deliverance….What confirmation do we have that God has some good reason for allowing suffering and evil to (temporarily) continue?

The cross. He must hate evil, too, or he wouldn’t have done that. If He hates evil that much, He must have some good reason for letting history continue too.”

At the Refuge, we encourage people to go toward the pain, like hugging a cactus. Jesus wants all your pain and all your struggles and will meet you at the foot of the cross.

He said “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

Trusting in Christ,

Cheryl Deal, LMFT
Director of Counseling Services