Following is an adaptation of a devotion that was used quite a
while ago for a Stephen Ministry Supervision/Support meeting. It is found in Take
a Break – 2-minute Devotions for the Workplace by Robert J. Strand.
We hope you find it thought-provoking, as we did.
The devotion began by
telling of a lady’s letter to the editors of Discovery magazine, which appeared in the October 1981 issue. She
wrote about being the mother of a 27-year-old autistic son. Her frustrations
led her to thoughts of murder, murder and suicide, running away, and moving
away – since she would never consider “putting him away” in
some state institution. She also told of how people told her things like,
“you must be special, because you cope so well” and “your
three daughters must be so compassionate.” The family of the autistic son
could never do “family things” except when he was away at camp. The
seemingly compassionate daughters struggled with having a brother who was
handicapped. The mother ended her letter writing: “He exists, he is our
son, we love him. I wish he had never been
born.”
The devotion is titled
“When There Are No Answers”. The mother who wrote the letter did
not see a happy ending to her situation. There are many life situations that
occur which seemingly have no happy ending. Many tragedies defy explanation.
There are situations that are “too tough to live with” because of
the sin that we have in this world. The author of the devotion continues:
“The most often asked question is, Why? Why me?
Why this? Why now? Why them? Why? Why? Only God can provide an answer to the
why questions of life, which He doesn’t regularly do. If you yourself are
in such a situation, you may not find a satisfactory answer, but there is still
a God in heaven who cares deeply about you. He has
made that plain on the pages of His Word. Start by reading from Isaiah 61:1-3.
Hang in there.”
If you find yourself in a life situation that seemingly does not have
a happy ending, please consider asking for help from the Stephen Ministry of
St. Paul. Stephen Ministers are trained to listen to someone who has a burden
to share. In sharing the burden, often the person begins to see solutions. The
Lord tells us to bear one another’s burdens. If you would like to find
out more about getting a Stephen Minister or serving as a Stephen Minister,
please talk to one of our Leaders or with Pastor Ed (682-0387;
pastor@splcs.org).
Our Leaders are:
May God be with all of you
as you share one another’s burdens and pray for each other!