Articles

From a Recent Journal Entry

This morning, my heart broke with news of a tragic loss in the life of a friend.

Immediately, I wanted to reach out and encourage my friend. But what could I say? No words would alleviate his loss.

While praying, it occurred to me that there is something better than alleviating loss – namely, helping people to move surmount their losses.

Something could be said about that. Indeed, something has been said about that . . . something said by God. Instead of my own words, I could offer God’s words. So I put them in a letter . . .

My dear friend,

In my prayers for you this morning, words came to my mind from the prophet Jeremiah. Addressing the exiled community of God’s people in Babylon, he reminds them that, despite appearances to the contrary, the Lord has not abandoned them. Even in exilic grief, God is working out his perfect plans for them.

‘For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope’ (Jeremiah 29:11).

This is the way of the Lord. What appears to humans to be regrettable loss is always, in his mind, the unfolding of a perfect plan.

Through a glass darkly, we strain to interpret the losses in our lives. But not God. To him the glass is always clear. He sees all, knows all, plans all — and the plans he makes are glorious.

It’s a superlative thing to trust in God.

‘And if we are prone to query his trustworthiness, we need look only at the cross. He who did not spare his own Son for us but delivered Him up for us all, how will he not also, with Him, freely give us everything we need.’ (Romans 8:32).

In such a sure hope I am, with you, trusting the Lord,

Tim