Crying Trees

A very dear friend of mine recently lost her mother. They were very close, so the loss has been especially difficult for her. However, she has handled it with strength and grace. She shared with our ladies’ group a moment she had while shopping at our local Walmart not long after her mom had passed. She says she was there on a routine shopping trip and was thinking of what she needed to buy when her focus suddenly shifted. She became acutely aware of the chatter around her, catching snippets of simple, ordinary conversations about everyday life; she noticed the busyness of people heading in different directions in search of needed items; she heard laughter and saw happy faces scattered about, and wondered how all these people could just go on with their lives like nothing had happened. She was standing there in deep grief, having lost the most amazing woman in her life, the woman who had molded her into the person she is today, and yet these people had no clue. How could they not sense her loss somehow? How could they not feel the grief that she felt?

It made me think of something I saw at our nearby wildlife refuge this past winter. A bad storm had come through our part of the state and encased everything in a layer of ice, then covered it in a thick blanket of snow. Feeling a bit of cabin fever, David, Colby, and I set out for a photo shoot of some of our favorite places in the refuge. The sun was out, so the roads were clearing, and everything looked sparkly and beautiful! We made our way to one of the small lakes and stopped to snap a few pictures. After getting our shots, we returned to the warmth of the car and headed out to search for more places to shoot. We had just begun driving away when I noticed something odd. Within a small cluster of trees, it appeared to be raining. I rolled down my window and listened. Yep! It was raining alright. I instinctively looked up to see where in the world the rain was coming from. You never know in Oklahoma. Sometimes there’s a rain cloud overhead, sometimes there isn’t. In this case, there wasn’t. As it turned out, it wasn’t rain at all but rather the ice melting off the trees. It was beautiful and sad at the same time because it appeared as if they were huddled together crying. They were mourning while the world around them was bright and cheerful.

It serves as a reminder that we have all experienced adversity and sorrow in our life: losing a loved one; enduring a tragedy that completely changed our view of the world as we once knew it; feeling a depression that wraps itself around us so tightly we feel we can barely breathe; living with anxiety so intense that it rips us away from our foundation and leaves us floundering, grasping for anything that might ground us; persevering through personal trials that separate us from our friends and family; hiding phobias that imprison us; and the list goes on. Yet even though we are enveloped in deep personal struggles, the outside world continues on, clueless of our predicament. No one else feels our pain or sorrow. No one hears us cry. No one sees the fear in our eyes. Nothing stops. The earth keeps spinning, the sun keeps shining and life moves forward.

Why doesn’t it stop? Why doesn’t the universe key in to the devastation we feel? How can people not know what we’re experiencing? Where is our hope? Where is consolation? Where is validation? Where is help?

2 Corinthians 4:8-10, 15-18 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God. For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Deuteronomy 31:8 The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.

These verses confirm that we will face trials in our life; difficult ones and sometimes on every side. But they are temporary. Although they may appear to stretch before us as an endless Oklahoma highway complete with potholes, washboards, and roadkill, there is an end. Our trials will not continue forever. While facing affliction, we may question whether life can ever return to “normal”. Truthfully, it might not, but God promises that we will never be alone. If we have accepted Jesus as our Savior, he is with us always. There is nothing we go through that He does not know about. He walks that highway with us, every step of the way. He renews our spirit everyday so we can keep going. What a comfort that is. And if we look at our trials in comparison to eternity, we can agree they are but for a moment. Not only is Jesus with us through it all, but we have a whole cheering section in Heaven!

Hebrews 12:1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.

Envision being a track runner about to start a race. Your adoring fans pack the stadium. You are surrounded by people who love you, support you, and believe in you. You hear the crack of the starting gun and a loud roar erupts as you begin the race. Your fans cheer for you, buoying you every step of the way until you cross the finish line.

We are running a race called life. Heaven is watching and cheering us on. It sees the weights we are trying to shed: trials, depression, anxiety, phobias, and sin. Anything that Satan can possibly lay on us. Not only that, but he is also throwing obstacles in our path. Anything to cause us to stumble or get off course: things like problems in the workplace; pettiness in the church; family issues; etc. He fights dirty. However, everyone in Heaven has already been through these things. They have run the race. They understand what we’re going through and are rooting for us. It takes patience to reach the finish line. But when we do, all of Heaven rejoices with us knowing we have run our very best.

Psalms 30:5b

Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.

Revelation 21:4

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

James 1:12

Blessed is the man that endureth temptation; for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

Jesus assures us that though we may be going through difficult times now: fighting battles; enduring sorrows; thwarting temptations that threaten to overtake us; and jumping over hurdles pushed in our way; one day they will all be behind us. Then, he will wipe away our tears, fill our hearts with joy, and lay a crown upon our head. Our fighting days will be over, our race finished, and we can celebrate victory with Jesus and all of Heaven.

*Note: If you are experiencing a difficult struggle, please reach out to someone you trust. I promise, you are not alone in what you are going through. Others have been where you are and want to help. If you feel like you have no one, you may certainly reach out to me in the comments section or in Messenger.

*God bless!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONiGLAPewSw