The Good Shepherd - John 10:1-21
When our daughter Annie died last summer, our easy-going, sometimes stressful, but overall happy life was changed. Darkness filled every moment of every day, and in those first few months we felt little reprieve or hope. We had to make a choice about who we wanted to be after our daughter’s death and who we wanted to trust.
Being in such a vulnerable position, we wrestled with who God is and what he promises us. We grieved for our daughter. We lamented to God and questioned how he could allow us to lose her. We were hurt, disappointed, sad, angry, and scared. We had put more hope and faith in ourselves and our plans for our family than we did in God. Then we remembered that God willingly sacrificed his Son for us. He went through the same loss we did, only he planned for it.
Bad things, hard things, and sad things will happen. But we have to remember that God is sovereign even in the darkness. He gave us Jesus, His only Son, who physically walked this earth so that we can be saved. Following Jesus is following the Savior who intimately knows our emotion, sorrow, and pain because he lived it too. We are never alone in the darkness and we are never lost, our Shepherd lights the way even when the path seems unpassable.
By realizing God’s sovereignty in bringing Jesus into this world to shepherd us through whatever darkness we encounter, we realized that God is sovereign in Annie’s death and our family’s continued life on this earth. Remembering that God gives us eternal life through Jesus, we remember he gives Annie eternal life as well. So we choose to trust God and follow Him.
Matt and Allison Dela Cuesta
Emerald St Community
Questions to Ponder:
Who do you turn to in trust when life hits with unexpected sadness and pain?
What are some ways that God shows He is still good, even if your current situation or circumstance is bad?
Bad things, hard things, and sad things will happen. What can you do to prepare your heart today for what may come tomorrow?