Why Me? The Popular Cry That Often Has No Answer

In recent months I have heard so many say “why me?” and “what did I do wrong?” to last a life time and I wonder why? Could it be that satan is busier than ever before or that we live our lives so carelessly that we forget there are consequences for every decision we make? I guess it is both and several other things but there seems to be too much pain everywhere. Now more than ever before, there is a great need for true hope, which is only found in Jesu Christ. We all need to have reasons for living through some of the difficulties we face as we go through life. Tough as they may sometimes be, as believers, we must succeed which translates to - we must ride it patiently waiting for the end which will surely come. No wonder when Paul cried out to God concerning some of his own challenge and/or difficulty in life, my interpretation of God’s answer to him is this – “you can cope with it because I have poured into you, all the strength you need to go through”. That does not in any way suggest that God initiated it nor does it say it will end and if it will, when. How comforting is that?

 

2 Corinthians 12: 8 - 9 “Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness. So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.”

Life does throw us “curve balls” as we all know. Moreover, how would satan show that he is the prince of the power of the air who is supposedly in charge on earth, something he stole from Adam and Eve. So things do happen sometimes that are not initiated by God and are also not consequences of any wrongdoing but  God allows them for reasons we may not be aware of like it was with Job. The one thing that is certain though, is that God knows how to make the challenges we face work good for us if we don’t quit. God is always working to make a testimony of every such situation so that at the end of the day even satan is left a little confused wondering how we came out of it with a testimony just like it happened with Jesus Christ. Thankfully, it does not matter how bad or painful it may seem, it is never too bad for God to work a testimony out of it as long as we don’t give in to satan and quit. To give in to satan includes having pity parties and really enjoy them or becoming more selfish/self-centered. Satan knows what all of these can do to our relationship with God; he knows they separate believers from God setting them on a downward spiral which is what he always hoped would happen.

1 Corinthians 2: 7 – 8 “No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God-his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began. But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord.”

Mark 6: 48a “He saw that they were in serious trouble, rowing hard and struggling against eh wind and waves… Jesus cam toward them, walking on the water. He intended to go past them, but when they saw him walking on the water, they cried out…”

This story of Christ and His disciples often comes to mind when I hear any of the “recently popular cries” like “why me?” I can only imagine how it would have felt as these disciples traveled across the lake and found themselves toiling in rowing. This must have been a journey they had done several times before they knew Jesus and it always went well otherwise they wouldn’t have done it, but this one time everything seemed to be going wrong notwithstanding that they had come to know Jesus Christ. What makes it even more intriguing is that Jesus was going by and had seen them but would have gone past them if they had not called out to Him. He not only did nothing upon seeing them toiling, but was about to go past them without solving their problem. Thank God they called out and got help just like they needed in this instance. Sometimes, though help comes, it doesn't always come in the way we need it to at the time. In Job’s case as well as several others in the bible, help did not come in the way it was needed and that is when it gets really tough. We must realize that God will do what He will do and in the best way ever because He sees the end and His purpose is always to work the best for us.

1 Peter 5: 10 “In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.”

One thing is certain, no matter the cause of the difficulties, it is always for "a moment" and will eventually pass. God does not enjoy seeing us suffer, that is satan’s job. God is always working good out of it all if we can just be patient and the only way to be patient is making Him our focus. I cannot promise that it won’t leave marks because it left marks on some others like Paul and even Job as well as several others even today. Paul actually speaks of bearing the marks for Christ on his body; and with Job, no matter how beautiful his new set of children were, how could he possibly forget that he had some other children many years ago and was starting life all over again? Despite all the pain, it is but for a moment and works character as well as several other benefits in and for us. Instead of moaning and asking the very familiar questions, we need to switch it up and begin to enjoy Jesus Christ despite our circumstance. If we stay in the word of God, we will find that we have abundant joy flowing from within notwithstanding all that may be going on around us. You can choose what you would rather do and if we make the right choice, heaven backs us with grace. Let us disappoint our enemy in every situation.