If there is a constant in the fallen world we live in, it is that we all experience disappointment and loss.  In 1 Peter 3:3-7, we are told that we will encounter trials and that for us as believers, the good goal of those trials are to push us closer to Jesus in faith that He is our Treasure and He is our inheritance now and in eternity.  1 Peter 3:3-7 – “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.  In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.“ (Bolded by me for emphasis)

Why do things happen the way they do?  I don’t know.  I do know that when we encounter times of suffering, trouble, disappointment, etc. there are two ways our heart can go.  The first is to pursue comfort in the world.  I would be lying to you if I said I never tried that myself.  The lie is that the sin and the world can comfort us, when it was sin and the world that brought us the suffering, trouble, disappointment, etc. to begin with.  Inevitably, God in His mercy and grace will reach us, reminding us that food, money, sex, and anything else will never be a subsitute for our Heavenly Father.  He is our portion.  He is where true lasting joy is found.  Everything else is a mere shadow meaning to point us to Him.  That is the second place where our heart can go during trials, is to God.  This is where healing and refreshment can begin as we strengthen our faith and trust in Him.  

God gives us a picture of what it means to pursue Jesus admidst loss.  We all have limited time, limited resources, and limited energy/emotions in life.  Everytime we experience loss whether of our own will or not, there is an opportunity to put more of ourselves with Christ.  In Philippians 3:7-16 Paul gives himself as an example – “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.  Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.  Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.  Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.  Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. Only let us hold true to what we have attained.” (Bolded by me for emphasis)

My own salvation was marked by loss.  For me, it was the loss of a relationship that pushed me towards Jesus.  I had placed my whole identity in a person and the future I had planned in my head, and the most loving thing God could do was take that away.  Painful, yes.  But the surpassing worth of Christ is far greater than any loss.  He is my inheritance for eternity.  Where would I be if God had not done that?  I don’t really want to know.  I know the sin that is still being put to death in me, and if there was no light of the knowledge of Jesus Christ pushing that back, I would not be someone you would want to know or be around.  That I can say with confidence.  God made space to grow me closer to Him.  I needed that to grow.  In time God would show me that unless someone I was with was pointing me to Him, pressing me closer to Him – no matter how good everything else was, they were not truly loving me, nor were they someone I should covenant myself with.  A tough lesson, but good.  One of the most important lessons as a Christian is to forget what lies behind and press forward.  Easier said than done, and this does not mean that we should not mourn our losses – we should, there is a time for that.  Forgetting and pressing forward means trusting that God has a plan for each of us, a good plan, and He is our inheritance.  We labor now through various trials so that we get more of Him, and more of Him is more peace and joy for us, because our joy is not found in our circumstance, but in Christ.  He is with us and for us, every moment of every day.  He demonstrated His love for us by dying for us, dying for the mockers who spat on Him as He went to the cross.  Jesus is our portion.  If you’re going through a time of loss, suffering or trials, my exhortation is not to ignore your emotions, but to take them to the LORD.  He loves you and is for you.  

Grace and Peace,
Adam