Why? Christian help for aching hearts.
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Christian help
for aching hearts Why did I ...? Why didn’t I
...? Why did they
...? Why did it ...?
Why did God
...? When your heart
is aching this question may well press down on your soul. Deep down you
realise you will probably never know the answer to the question that is
haunting you. Two women
walked by a harbour. A Christian approached and asked if they would like to
take away with them a small booklet about the Lord Jesus. "Oh, I think
this is a most inappropriate time." said the mother, "My son has
just died, and we have come here to try to get over it." The Christian
answered, "I don’t think it is inappropriate. The Bible not only calls
God "The God of our Salvation," but also "The God of all
comfort". Those who come to know Him as their Saviour, go on to know Him
as the one who comforts them in their distress." Our friends may
sympathise, our family may support, but where can we go to receive comfort?
Is it out of place to point people back to God when their hearts are breaking
with sorrow? If it isn’t, why not? A first reason
is - there is no comfort in blaming ourselves. We have all said
things that should never have even lodged in our hearts, let alone be spoken.
We have all neglected care and love to someone, but it brings no comfort,
only a further torture to ask, "Why ever did I say it?" or
"Why didn’t I just do ... and now it’s too late?" Then - there is
no comfort in blaming others. It does not
give us peace to have harsh or angry thoughts about others. Bitterness and
resentment are poor comfort - they only make things worse. Perhaps someone
has been insensitive. Perhaps people have not understood how deep your
feelings have been. Some of those thoughts may be justified, but they do not
carry comfort into the soul. There is also
no comfort in blaming God. We all know God
is all-powerful. He could have done anything He chose to do. We all know that
we live in a world that is away from God. Sin is not only all around us, it
is also deep within us. Frustration, tragedy, loss and grief are part of the
fabric of our lives. Through them God tells us again and again that things
are not right in the world or in us. He always treats us better than we
deserve. He is not capricious and vindictive. His evident goodness to us
through most of our lives should lead us back to Himself to want to know Him,
but it often doesn’t. And when trouble comes, if we do not know God as our
Saviour and Friend, it seems that He is so far away. There is
comfort in trusting God. There is
comfort for aching hearts. It is found in the God who made you. It is found
in the God who loves this poor sad world. It is found in the God who has
permitted all your problems to come to you. The first great
comfort for any person is the comfort of forgiveness for all of our sins. God has
demonstrated His love. He is not out to destroy us. He is not a vindictive
aggressor. He is love. The greatest act of His love was the giving of His own
Son, the Lord Jesus to die for sinners. Because of His sorrow and suffering
on the cross all our sins can be forgiven - careless words, neglected acts of
care. All can be forgiven when we turn back to God and ask the Lord Jesus
Christ to come and remove our sin and wash it completely away. There is great
comfort to a troubled conscience in this. Heaven is opened to our soul for
time and eternity. Christ draws near to us to help us live. We are able to
pick up the pieces of our broken dreams and hopes. The Christian has a
wonderful Friend in His Saviour, who helps through such times. There is a
second great comfort for any aching heart, after they have come to know the
comfort of forgiveness. Someone once
said, "It’s better felt than telt." It is described in the Bible as
"peace that passes all understanding". Because sin
keeps us from this comfort it has to be dealt with first. Then we are told
there is a way to obtain this peace in our grief. In the New Testament
you will find the book called Philippians, and in chapter 4 verses 6 and 7 we
are told that in our turmoil and distress we should find a place for prayer.
We should be real before God, telling Him, asking Him, thanking Him. Our own
felt need will determine what we say. It is after this as we learn to trust
Him in our distress and grief that the peace which cannot be described or
understood by those who are away from God will come and keep us calm. It is
like ointment on a wound. God binds up the broken heart. God Himself comforts
those who have received His forgiveness and love in the Lord Jesus Christ. These are not
empty words. They have been proved again and again by Christians who have
passed through times of the deepest sorrow. That is why I can urge you now to
turn to God. To turn away from sin and to ask Him to save you, to change your
sinful heart and then to comfort your aching heart. If you wish to
talk to someone after reading this article, please contact: David and Colette Harding: mec@milnrow.org
or call 01706 357281 |
“Is there anyone who can mend
broken hearts?” “Can I ever know happiness again?” “Other people’s laughter seems
to make me feel the pain all the more.” “It’s like I have a jigsaw
puzzle with the most important parts missing.” “Is there
anyone out there who can help?” “I even find people’s
sympathy quite hard to listen to.” Cutting God out
of the picture doesn’t make things easier. In their grief, untold numbers of
men and women and boys and girls have found a new relationship with their
God, through the words about Jesus Christ in the Bible. |