Life is Hard!

In my afternoon phone call with my husband Keith, he told me of a conversation he had with one of his Gideon brothers. This man had been watching the General Patraeus confirmation hearing and repeated how the General responded to a question about ending the war: “Just because it’s hard doesn’t mean it is hopeless.” Neither of us knew if the General is a Christian, but this answer made us believe that he probably is.

Those nine words really made an impact on me. Life has been hard lately. Keith’s illness, a busy time at work, not enough vehicles for the drivers in the family, repairs needed to be done at home, a sense of disconnect with church…life is hard. Difficulty is not new to us, we have always had one problem or another, whether it be finances or family sickness. Funny, at the time, I am sure the hard times were so overwhelming we wondered how we would ever survive. Now, looking back, I struggle to remember the circumstances. I guess the old adage, “That which does not kill me only makes me stronger" is true.

Romans 5:3-5 just happens to be my life verse and just happens to directly correlate. “And yet we rejoice in our suffering, because suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character and character hope and hope does not disappoint us because it is given to us through Jesus Christ.” Life is only truly hopeless if life is Christ-less.

Pastor John Reinke worked as an interim pastor at Atonement Lutheran Church years ago. I was lucky enough to be serving as secretary at the time. John believed that all Christians needed to find a life verse, a Biblical passage that could be memorized and used often. I can’t remember how I found Romans 5:3-5, I just know that it has helped me more times than I can remember and has been repeated to others as much if not more. It is the answer to all pain and suffering: loss of life; loss of job; hurt feelings; physical pain; emotional strife; marriage woes; misunderstandings…a cure-all of sorts. It is God’s way of reminding that if suffering does not kill me, it will make me stronger. If it does kill me, there will be no more suffering. It really is a win-win situation.

As I write this I look at an old Avon purchase, a small ceramic church with scripture cards that I try to read daily. Today’s passage is also from Romans, chapter 12, verse 12: “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

Life is hard, but Jesus is faithful and it will be better. “The will of God will never take you where the grace of God will not protect you.” So if life is hard, pray, be patient and believe that the hope and grace Jesus gave us is sufficient to get us through.