Suffering From Afar

Suffering From Afar

Suffering is everywhere. All around us there are moans of agony and devastation, leaving behind a whimpering trail for shalom.

The feared diagnosis of a loved one.
The miscarriage of a long awaited child.
The savage violence around this shrinking globe.
The wreckage of mother nature.

Suffering is a hard thing to comprehend and an even harder one to communicate. And yet there is a depth to suffering that is only understood by those journeying through it. But there is a prism of hope that comes from those outsiders who get the privilege to walk alongside of us through seasons of suffering.

As I reflect on my own seasons of suffering I am reminded that we were not meant to walk alone.

The Loneliest Question
Last week’s blog was a challenging one to write. Any depth of thinking on the crucifixion of Christ will bring you to your knees. The cruelest silence were those moments of Christ’s suffering apart from the Father.

The one thing suffering always has in common is a question…the question of why?

Why me?
Why now?
Why my child?
Why my dad?

The affliction of Christ aroused the question of purpose. Jesus did not respond, what do I do? or even where have you gone? But why have you forsaken me? He was reaching to the heart of the will of God and the depth of human suffering. Cries of “why” echo throughout the plight of humanity.

We want to know the will of the Father. We want to know what God is up to. We want something different. We want this cup to be taken from us.

It is these very moments that we realize we are not in control. We can’t come down off of that cross. God is drawing us near, into his very presence. Proving, despite our reluctance that things are not in our hands but rather are resting firmly in hands pierced by nails. While we may feel lonely, we are not. Jesus endured loneliness so that in the midst of our suffering we would enjoy the presence of himself.

The Miles Between
Some of the dearest friends that life has to offer have been walking through a sequence of suffering seasons. If it is not this…it is that. If it is not one…it is the other. I share their story because there is a truth that surfaces when we realize our role in the suffering of those we love even if it is with miles between us.

There is a certain kind of friendship that is shared among people that draws out the best of you…even if it is painful…even when you feel helpless. We have that kind of friendship.

These friends were the first to welcome us to a strange city. They are the ones that make you dream. Not just of what you can do but of what you can do together…with them. They are the ones that always open their door or rush to your apartment to “office wheelchair” your wife to the ER in the middle of the night. Groggy…but there. Always there.

There until they are not…not physically anyways.

Then they get news that makes the miles between feel like an impossible expanse. The thing they need most, the thing you need most is to be there…with them. As you watch them from afar you see their faith become real, tangible, as if they walked into the tomb and touched it’s vacancy. They are real and raw. Rubbed over and over again into the likeness of Christ and you begin to understand that suffering is that agonizing requisite of sanctification. The painful molding into Christlikeness.

The Dusty Hill
A quick glance at the suffering of Jesus reveals an interesting aspect of his journey. If there was ever a person who could walk through pain and suffering alone, it was Jesus. But in his humanity he cannot and he did not shuffle up the hill with untreated, splintery wood on his back alone. One Simon of Cyrene was given the humbling task of carrying the cross of Jesus up a dusty hill.

This is exactly what suffering looks like for the family of Christ followers. This is exactly how we are to respond to those we love when they receive news that suffering just kicked down the front door. There may not be a physical burden we can lift or maybe there is. Maybe the miles don’t lend to the tenderness of an embrace. But don’t miss the opportunity to love well and to inject glimpses of joy and hope and to watch. Watch them because it is these images that will echo into eternity the faithfulness of God’s beloved.

Suffering is not going anywhere…not today anyways. It will be a part of this world until the return of Christ, when he comes to crush it for good. Until then the people of God are called to walk together. Whether we are close by or a long way off we have been called to follow behind and allow the splinters of their cross to sink deeply into our backs.

*To learn more about our friends story, Abby and Jared Perry, follow along at joywovendeep.com.