A Different Question

I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Psalm 23:4

THE 1920S HOME we bought needed so much love, both inside and out. And the outside was going to take a village. Our dear friend Erik was up for helping us however he could. He was married to one of my dearest friends and decided to spend an entire weekend with us scraping off old house paint. Driving several hours to our new house, crashing on our couch, and chipping away stubborn paint for an entire weekend was an absolute gift to us. But that’s just who Erik was and what he did.

Not long after our house-painting party, his headaches started. Erik began battling migraines and dizziness, and finally saw a doctor for tests and scans. As he and his wife, Kelly, held their two little boys in the waiting room, they also held their breath. What were the results?

Two words no one ever wants to hear. Brain cancer.

Two words they both thought: Why, God?

Erik loved God, served Him faithfully, had been a missionary in Turkey for several years, taught God’s Word, and was a faithful husband and a dynamite dad.

He fought long and hard and held on to God’s goodness until his very last breath. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever seen, one of the hardest things my friend Kelly has ever lived. At his funeral, I vividly remember Kelly courageously standing up and telling stories of ways her husband loved her, recounting goodness and grace in her life. She stood there wrapped in grace, wearing it beautifully.

Not long after, widowed at thirty-one, with two sons under three, Kelly also cried out to God, “Why?”

But after a while, she said it was the wrong question. Over time she started asking, Who? Who will be with me? Who will sustain me? Who will take care of me?

Over and over her answer ended up being the same: God. God was with her. God sustained her. God took care of her. And He did. I watched God care for her, her boys, and their home. His grace was amazing.

Psalm 23 is written by David, who literally ran for his life in the shadows and valleys. And yet he still wrote the words, “I will fear no evil, for you are with me.” Throughout the Bible we see numerous occasions of God asking His people to do hard things but assuring them that He would be with them each step of the way:

Moses. When God told him to approach Pharaoh and demand freedom for the Israelites, God assured Moses that He would be with him, giving him the words to say.

Joshua. While Joshua looked across the Jordan River to the Promised Land, God told him the land was his—he just needed to take possession of it. He said, “I will be with you. . . . I will not fail you or abandon you” (Joshua 1:5, NLT).

Joseph. Left for dead by his brothers and jailed in Egypt for two years, Joseph felt forgotten. But he later testified that though others meant him harm, God wove it all into good.

God. Is. With. Me. Four powerful words that have sustained men and women in the fight, through the fire, and next to the grave. May we find our contentment in knowing God weaves our pain and brokenness into good.

GRACE REFLECTION: Close your eyes and pray slowly each word: God. Is. With. Me. over and over for one minute. Let God’s grace and presence sustain you and bring you contentment today.