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December 08, 2007

God Was There and He Cares

by Shana Schutte

When I was seven, my mother heard from a neighbor lady that her two elementary-aged boys had the chicken pox. So my mother said to my sister and I, "Melonie and Shana, why don't you go play with Mike and Jerry?" Both of us happily bounced down the street, unaware of the red, itchy dots that would result from a visit. As we approached the backyard where we heard the boys playing, Mike yelled, "You can't come back heeeere! We're sick! We have the chicken pox!" Rarely deterred by danger, my older sister yelled, "I don't care!" and climbed over the fence. Because I was more cautious, I ran home to avoid illness.

My plan didn't work--but my mother's did.

My sister caught the virus and passed it on to me. Mom knew that once you got the bug, there was a next-to-nothing chance that you'd catch it again, so she wanted us to have it while we were young.

I wish that heartbreak and disappointment were like the chicken pox--that a one-time exposure meant immunity forever. However, because we live on a sinful planet, heartbreak happens often, so we need to know that God is with us when we are wounded and that He cares. Otherwise, we will not successfully handle the pain of life.

In the book of Jeremiah, there is a popular verse that says, "I have loved you with an everlasting love..." (Jeremiah 31:3). Of course, the word "love" shows His care, and the word "everlasting" shows how He never leaves us--even in our most intense heartache.

This word "everlasting" is the word owlam in the original Hebrew language and it means, "forever or continuous existence." Think about it. This means that God's everlasting love has been there for you since before you were born and will continue forever, past your lifetime on earth and into eternity. The word "continuous" suggests that there are not any stops or gaps in His love--not even when you hurt the most.

Was your heart broken in the past and you wonder if God was there? You can put to rest the questions that make you doubt Him. God has you covered with his "forever and continuous love." Not only that, but He'll work out whatever happened to you for your good and His glory.

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28, NIV)

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