Sorrow And The Good Shepherd
Start writing a post
Christianity

Sorrow And The Good Shepherd

Thoughts on the past week's tornadoes and grief.

147
Sorrow And The Good Shepherd

A stranger in my life took their own life the other day, on a Sunday. As tornadoes raged around our city, their own personal twister roared and ripped inside the soul. I knew them in passing, by their smile and the work of their two old hands, knew them by their name and their walk, but I didn't really know them. I hadn't a clue about the things they carried, as the title of that book goes.

The news came blatantly and yet uncertainly. For never having said anything but the customary "hello" and "how are you," it ripped into my heart pretty hard. Too much thought on the idea and I grow nauseous, heart-sick. If only I had known, I think, but what else could I have said except hello? A hello is something. An invitation of kindness? I always said hello and never goodbye.

Speaking of the tornadoes, twenty-three funerals will be or have been held since Sunday. Death came in a whirlwind on a spring day, on a Sunday, and the Lord allowed it. He did not merely sit on high in heaven. His Spirit was there, down among the gnarled wreckage of homes and bodies, watching and weeping with the families over the dead.

How can I say this and say it with a straight face? Because I know my God. He is the Good Shepherd, one to be trusted, not just with a few hours on Sunday, in church or in hellish horror, but with our entire lives and our eternities. Trusted to see it all and to love us. Love doesn't always look like acceptance and smiles. Love can sometimes mean confrontation and alienation, doing a hard thing for the good of the person, making a choice, not just feeling a feeling. The Good Shepherd in Psalm 23 is God. He cares for His sheep, for those who believe in Him, He calls them mine and will not forsake them. Others may flee, friends may leave in the wake of tragedy and anguish, but He remains.

Psalm 23
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

The Shepherd is good. Only good doesn't mean safe (as we like to think) and as Lewis points out in his books about Narnia. Sometimes good is downright dangerous, fearsome. Because we are sinners who need sanctifying, whose default it is to desire sin. Because we are weak, and He is strong. Because it's not about this life, these bodies. It's all about our eternal souls. Because God loves us, He is willing to endure allowing us to be hurt, to be disciplined.. this doesn't mean that pain is always discipline for a sin or something like that... sometimes an event, an agony, is completely senseless to us, incomprehensible.. and will be until we die.

Let me be clear: God is not a sadist. He is our Savior. He loves us so much, feels our pain so deeply, that he came down to be born in a manger and be nailed up on a Roman cross. His agony is our glory, and this agony of His will turn even our greatest agonies into glories. He did it for us. For me. For you.

And I don't mean to make sorrow and grief simple or trite. They are not. They are complex and horrible. Again, there are some things that we won't understand until we meet Christ face to face. But I'll say it right now. I'll put my neck on the block. If something will bring me closer to Christ, even something terrible, then give me the 'something.' Not because I want it (definitely don't want it when I get it), but because I need it, because God gives it.

When I sat crying in my dorm room several times a week during freshman year, I sure did not want that hardship, that loneliness. But looking back, God has allowed me to see just a glimpse of how that grief was a road closer to Himself, how it opened up doors and started friendships I couldn't have even dreamed up. My sorrow is small compared to many, compared to those now weeping at funerals and picking up pieces of their lives scattered by a twister, compared to the suffering of a man depressed and of the gaping loss of life to others.

But I've been taught, His grace is sufficient for them as well. And I've been shown, that like the stars twinkle in a night sky, beauty and goodness shine brighter against a dark background. Like the stars, the Shepherd's goodness shines in sorrow. There is nothing to distract from it. Somehow, God is good to us not in spite of, but through the hardship!

Though the pain will come, the night will descend, and the rain will fall, the Lord promises to be right there in the thick of it with us.

What lavish love, that He promises to comfort us, even as we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, and I'll take Him at His Word.

But soon there will come a day.. when:

"He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." — Rev. 21:4

Until then, we are still here, in the old order of things, and the Lamb is still good, still God.

To take a line from the Bible and later, Jane Eyre:

"Even so, come, Lord Jesus."

Related Articles Around the Web
Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Student Life

Waitlisted for a College Class? Here's What to Do!

Dealing with the inevitable realities of college life.

50530
college students waiting in a long line in the hallway
StableDiffusion

Course registration at college can be a big hassle and is almost never talked about. Classes you want to take fill up before you get a chance to register. You might change your mind about a class you want to take and must struggle to find another class to fit in the same time period. You also have to make sure no classes clash by time. Like I said, it's a big hassle.

This semester, I was waitlisted for two classes. Most people in this situation, especially first years, freak out because they don't know what to do. Here is what you should do when this happens.

Keep Reading...Show less
a man and a woman sitting on the beach in front of the sunset

Whether you met your new love interest online, through mutual friends, or another way entirely, you'll definitely want to know what you're getting into. I mean, really, what's the point in entering a relationship with someone if you don't know whether or not you're compatible on a very basic level?

Consider these 21 questions to ask in the talking stage when getting to know that new guy or girl you just started talking to:

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

Challah vs. Easter Bread: A Delicious Dilemma

Is there really such a difference in Challah bread or Easter Bread?

32310
loaves of challah and easter bread stacked up aside each other, an abundance of food in baskets
StableDiffusion

Ever since I could remember, it was a treat to receive Easter Bread made by my grandmother. We would only have it once a year and the wait was excruciating. Now that my grandmother has gotten older, she has stopped baking a lot of her recipes that require a lot of hand usage--her traditional Italian baking means no machines. So for the past few years, I have missed enjoying my Easter Bread.

Keep Reading...Show less
Adulting

Unlocking Lake People's Secrets: 15 Must-Knows!

There's no other place you'd rather be in the summer.

955603
Group of joyful friends sitting in a boat
Haley Harvey

The people that spend their summers at the lake are a unique group of people.

Whether you grew up going to the lake, have only recently started going, or have only been once or twice, you know it takes a certain kind of person to be a lake person. To the long-time lake people, the lake holds a special place in your heart, no matter how dirty the water may look.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

Top 10 Reasons My School Rocks!

Why I Chose a Small School Over a Big University.

180691
man in black long sleeve shirt and black pants walking on white concrete pathway

I was asked so many times why I wanted to go to a small school when a big university is so much better. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure a big university is great but I absolutely love going to a small school. I know that I miss out on big sporting events and having people actually know where it is. I can't even count how many times I've been asked where it is and I know they won't know so I just say "somewhere in the middle of Wisconsin." But, I get to know most people at my school and I know my professors very well. Not to mention, being able to walk to the other side of campus in 5 minutes at a casual walking pace. I am so happy I made the decision to go to school where I did. I love my school and these are just a few reasons why.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments