Grace for those struggling

This is a strange Easter for me. It’s not strange from the perspective that the details are foreign (certainly not). What makes it strange is how hard it is for me to focus. I want to be present, to fully prepare to celebrate the good news of Christ’s death and resurrection as we do every weekend at our church, but…

I’ll admit, it’s hard.

Right now, there are a lot of questions on my mind about the future—especially the question of what the future holds with our status in America. I know what I’m supposed to do with this, and I do it. I pray. I ask others to pray. I pray some more. I confess my own shortcomings in trusting God with the outcome for everything. But the anxiety is still there in the background, waiting to bubble up to the surface again.

Then I think about the struggles other people I know have. Struggles that make mine seem like nothing, and aren’t my business to share. And I can’t imagine how they’re holding everything together.

Then I read books like 1-2 Samuel, the Psalms, and Lamentations, and I’m reminded again that this experience isn’t new. But more than that, I’m reminded that we have an answer. That “casting our burdens” (Psalm 55:22) onto the Lord is a real option for us. We might think of it as a platitude, but it’s anything but. It is our hope.

Here’s the thing: those who encouraged us to do this were also the ones who needed it. They experienced the same kind of trials and anxieties we do. They experienced horrible tragedies (some of which were self-inflicted). They were not superheroes who never wavered in their trust and obedience. They struggled. But in their struggles they found grace.

This doesn’t make our struggles and suffering any less real They still exist. They are still ever present realities. But the grace offered through Christ is just as real. Just as ever-present. And it is here for all of us, right now.