Hope in a Time of Heartache.

Lamentations 3:21-24
21 Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:
22 Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
24 I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him."

Today's scripture I'm bringing to you is from the book of Lamentations As soon as I read over this passage, I looked at the name of the book...Lamentations. I noticed something ironic about the name. It had the word lament in it, which means to show sorrow or mourn for.

On late Monday night, my parents and I received the sad news that my great uncle had passed away earlier that day. It appeared that it was a peaceful passing, I might add. It was a bit shocking though. I write this post less than 24 hours after we received the news. The irony in all this is that I've been lamenting my great uncle's death (just ironic given the name of the book). I haven't been able to accomplish much since because quite often an image comes to my mind and I can't concentrate on anything else. My body feels weak, almost like I have the flu without any of the symptoms - other than the achy-ness. It's not like I'm doing it on purpose. One other note I noticed was the play on words of morning (mourning) in the passage, having basically the same effect to me as the irony.

As for the meaning of the scripture, I believe it's pretty self-explanatory. Due to God's great amount of compassion and love, I have hope. There's no reason I shouldn't. I know I would be more miserable if I didn't have God. As for applying the meaning to yesterday's scripture, I have to trust that I will be strengthened by all of this in the end. I need to really use all of my faith in this situation.

Obviously, we can't get our loved ones who died back here on Earth. However, if I ask the Lord to make a stronghold in our family, I know he will. Sometimes, you can't just take what the Bible says so literally, but instead apply it to your life in a more realistic sense.

He doesn't let all this happen because he doesn't care. He does care. It's more or less to bring out one's faith and to teach certain lessons.

I leave you today with the request to pray for my family and everyone who knew this inspiring man. Comfort us all, Lord. Thank you!

Thank you Tenth Avenue North for writing the incredible song "By Your Side!"



P.S. If you have trouble with the video stopping and starting, keep the video paused, and let it "buffer" (load) as it's called for a while. You will see the red bar along the bottom advance (speed depends on your Internet connection). Wait until that bar gets pretty far along (I'd say more than halfway) before you play the video and it shouldn't pause.