HIS GRACE IS SUFFICIENT

Life happens to all of us. There’s times we cry, times we laugh, we mourn, we rejoice, we dance, we celebrate. Like it says in the bible, there is a time for everything and a season for every purpose under heaven.

Pastor Mo preached a message one Sunday that’s got me thinking since then. HIS GRACE IS SUFFICIENT. He said ‘Jesus learnt obedience by the things He suffered (well, he said ‘enjoyed’ to trick us and we all yelled back – ‘suffered’).

We know the scriptures. I even know Paul’s prayer in Philippians 3 verse 10 where he said ‘that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his suffering…’ Looking at this scripture, I realized that I have prayed, many times, to know the power of His resurrection, but I’ve never thought of the fellowship of His suffering, until that Sunday’s message. Don’t get me wrong, I am not looking for suffering. I am just pondering….

Why do bad things happen to good people? There are many bad people out there, why don’t bad things happen to bad people and good things to good people?

Once, a friend of mine lost her husband and we went to comfort her. She is a good woman; her husband was a good man. They both loved the Lord. Why did he die and so young. We had another friend with us that day. She was married to a monster of a man who beat her black and blue whenever he fancied. And she wondered out loud ‘why is my horrible monster of a husband still alive when this good man is dead?’ That’s life.

I met a friend a few days back. His wife died a year and a half ago. And I started to ask him how he’s been. He said the entire experience was such a shock. At times, his heart would hurt so much he feared it would physically break

‘How did you cope’, I asked

‘My dear, there’s no manual to teach you to cope, you just wake up every day and live. That’s life’.

Over a year ago, a friend of mine had to bury her 1 week old child and asked me to go with her.  I wept with her over the very brief life of such a pretty baby girl. We were Nigerians living in Paris at the time and knew at some point we would move back home. Part of her grief was ‘God would I leave my baby here’? I didn’t know what to say. After we buried that child and came out of the cemetery, the sun was shining, couples were kissing on the streets, and the city of love was alive. That’s life.

I have never been personally touched by grief so strong. I have only buried my grandparents and they lived to a disgustingly ripe old age. My grandfather at 80 had all his teeth intact and would struggle over pieces of chicken with us; my parents are alive and heading in that direction, my entire family intact. I have never had to deal with death or grave illness or extreme hunger or pain and depression. I have never known great loss or great need.

I have been sad many times, financially challenged, temporarily depressed, but in all these times I believed in God’s goodness and moved on. Whatever I didn’t have, I reckoned I didn’t need. I believe that my God shall supply all my needs according to His riches in glory. I believe that the joy of the Lord is my strength; I believe that God is good. I sing His praises when I wake up in the morning for indeed He has been good to me. I am so blessed.

However, this is my pondering…

When life’s happenings stop at my doorstep – will I still sing His praises?

Will you?