BibleTimeLines.com : Discouraged? Got Problems?

When Life Hurts, Does God Even Care?

Have you ever reached the point where you wondered how much more you could take?

Maybe you've been praying about something for a long time, and nothing seems to change. Perhaps you've lost someone you love, you're struggling with your health, or the problems just keep coming. You may even be wondering why God seems so far away when you need Him most.

If you've ever felt that way, there's something I would like you to consider.

Jesus knows exactly what it feels like to hurt.

On the night before His crucifixion, Jesus went into the Garden of Gethsemane with His disciples. He was carrying a burden so overwhelming that He told His closest friends, He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” (Matthew 26:38, NLT).

He asked them to stay awake with Him. But they fell asleep.

Think about that for a moment. Jesus, who had comforted so many others, was now experiencing terrible sorrow Himself. And the friends He wanted beside Him couldn't even stay awake.

If you're hurting today, you don't have to pretend everything is fine before coming to Jesus. He already understands sorrow, disappointment, loneliness, and pain.

And He hasn't forgotten you.

The Bible contains some remarkable promises for people going through difficult times. It also tells the stories of people who loved God deeply but still faced terrible problems.

Perhaps their experiences can help us understand something about the God who promises never to abandon His children.

A Few Bible Promises:

Psalm 34:18 — God Is Near the Brokenhearted
When life leaves us feeling crushed, God has not moved away from us. He draws near.
Matthew 11:28–30 — Jesus Invites the Weary to Come to Him
Jesus doesn't ask us to solve all our problems before coming to Him. He invites us to bring our burdens to Him and find rest.
Isaiah 41:10 — God Promises to Strengthen and Help Us
We don't have to face life's difficulties alone. God promises His presence, strength, and help.
Zephaniah 3:17 — God Delights in His Children
God doesn't merely tolerate us. He loves us, rejoices over us, and offers comfort through His love.
Deuteronomy 31:6 — God Will Not Abandon Us
Even when we cannot see the way forward, we can trust that God has not forgotten us.

When God's People Became Discouraged

It's one thing to read God's promises when life is going well. It's quite another to believe them when everything seems to be falling apart.

You might be surprised to discover how many people in the Bible struggled with discouragement. Some became frightened. Others felt abandoned. A few became so overwhelmed that they wished they could die.

And these weren't necessarily people who had turned their backs on God. Some were among His most faithful followers.

Consider Elijah. He had just witnessed one of the most remarkable demonstrations of God's power on Mount Carmel. Yet shortly afterward, he was so discouraged that he sat beneath a tree and asked God to let him die (1 Kings 19:4).

How did God respond?

He didn't scold Elijah for being discouraged. Instead, He provided food, allowed him to rest, and gently helped him begin to see things differently.

That tells us something wonderful about God's character.

God doesn't stop loving His children when they become discouraged.

And Elijah wasn't the only one. The Bible contains many stories of people who struggled with fear, grief, disappointment, and uncertainty—and discovered that God had not abandoned them.

end of Psalm 13, David was singing about God's mercy.

The enemies were still there. The dangers hadn't disappeared. But David was remembering something his circumstances had almost caused him to forget.

God had not abandoned him.

Job: When Nothing Makes Sense

Few people in the Bible experienced suffering as devastating as Job.

He lost his possessions, his children, and eventually his health. His friends came to comfort him, but their explanations only added to his pain. They insisted that his suffering must somehow be his fault.

Job knew otherwise.

What made his experience especially difficult was that he couldn't understand why any of it was happening. He had tried to live faithfully, yet his world had fallen apart.

And there was something Job didn't know.

The opening chapters of his story reveal a conflict involving Satan that Job himself could not see. His suffering wasn't evidence that God had stopped loving him. In fact, the accusations against Job were part of a much larger controversy about God's character and the faithfulness of His children.

But Job didn't have the advantage of reading those opening chapters.

He had to live through the experience without knowing what was happening behind the scenes.

He grieved. He questioned. He wished he had never been born. At times, he desperately wanted an explanation from God.

Yet through all his confusion, Job continued reaching toward the One he couldn't understand.

When God finally spoke, He didn't explain every detail of what had happened. Instead, He helped Job recognize how much more there was to reality than Job could possibly see.

I wonder how often we find ourselves in a similar position.

We see the pain immediately in front of us, but we cannot see everything happening beyond our understanding.

Job's story doesn't answer every question about suffering. But it does challenge the idea that suffering proves God is displeased with us.

Sometimes the person who is hurting most deeply is someone God loves very much.

(Click here for a sharper image that can be printed at home.)

Peter: When You've Disappointed Yourself

Perhaps one of the most painful kinds of discouragement comes when we know we've made a terrible mistake.

Peter understood that feeling.

He loved Jesus. He had left his fishing boats to follow Him. He had witnessed miracles, heard His teachings, and confidently declared that he would remain faithful even if everyone else abandoned Him.

But on the night Jesus was arrested, Peter's courage collapsed.

Three times he denied knowing Jesus.

Then the rooster crowed.

Luke tells us that Jesus turned and looked at Peter. Suddenly Peter remembered what Jesus had told him, and he went outside and wept bitterly (Luke 22:61–62).

Imagine that moment.

Peter had failed the very Person he loved most. And Jesus knew it.

What would happen now? Would Jesus ever trust him again?

After the resurrection, Jesus met Peter and the other disciples beside the Sea of Galilee. There, near a charcoal fire, Jesus asked Peter three times whether he loved Him.

Each time Peter answered, Jesus gave him work to do in caring for His followers (John 21:15–17).

Jesus knew exactly what Peter had done. Yet He hadn't stopped loving him, and He wasn't finished with him.

Peter's failure was real, but it didn't have to be the end of his story.

Perhaps you've made mistakes you wish you could undo. Perhaps you've disappointed people you love, or you've done something that makes you wonder whether God could ever use you again.

Remember Peter.

The same Jesus who knew Peter would deny Him also knew what Peter could become through His grace.

What Do These Stories Tell Us About God?

Elijah was exhausted and frightened. David felt forgotten. Job couldn't understand why his life had fallen apart. Peter was overwhelmed by the knowledge of his own failure.

Their circumstances were different, but they had something in common.

God had not stopped loving any of them.

He cared for Elijah when he was too exhausted to continue. He listened to David's questions. He remained present in Job's suffering, even when Job couldn't understand what was happening. And Jesus reached out to Peter after Peter had denied Him.

None of these stories promises that following God will make our problems disappear.

But they reveal something about the One who walks with us through those problems.

He knows our weaknesses. He understands our fears. He sees things we cannot see. And He doesn't give up on His children simply because they're having a difficult time.

Perhaps that's why the Bible contains so many promises for people who are struggling.

We need to hear them more than once.

More Promises for Difficult Days

Sometimes we need to be reminded that God's love hasn't changed, even when our circumstances have.

The apostle Paul wrote that neither death nor life, nor anything else in creation, can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:38–39).

Peter reminded believers that they could experience grief through various trials while still holding on to the hope of salvation (1 Peter 1:6–9).

Through Jeremiah, God assured His people living in exile that He had not forgotten His plans for their future (Jeremiah 29:11).

Paul also encouraged believers to look beyond the suffering of the present toward the eternal glory God has promised (2 Corinthians 4:16–18).

And perhaps the most wonderful promise of all comes near the end of the Bible.

God tells us that a day is coming when death, sorrow, crying, and pain will be no more (Revelation 21:4).

Think about that.

Jesus isn't merely promising to help us survive a world filled with suffering. He has promised to bring suffering itself to an end.

There will come a day when no one will sit beside a hospital bed wondering whether someone they love will survive. No parent will stand beside a child's grave. No one will lie awake wondering how to face another day.

The things that cause us so much pain today will be gone. This is actually what God has been working on throughout the Bible.

Until then, we may still have questions. We may still become discouraged. We may even have days when we struggle to pray.

But we can remember the stories of Elijah, David, Job, and Peter.

And we can remember Jesus in Gethsemane.

The One who understands suffering has promised that suffering will not have the final word.

More Encouragement From the Bible:

Romans 8:38–39 — Nothing Can Separate Us From God's Love
Neither suffering, hardship, danger, nor even death can separate us from the love of God revealed in Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 1:6–9 — Faith and Suffering Can Exist Together
Experiencing sorrow and difficulties does not mean our faith has failed. God can strengthen our faith even through painful experiences.
Jeremiah 29:11 — God's Intentions Toward His People Are Good
Even when the future looks uncertain, God's purposes are not evil. This promise was originally given to His people during exile, reminding them that their suffering was not the end of their story.
2 Corinthians 4:16–18 — Our Present Suffering Is Not the End
Paul reminds us that the difficulties of this life are almost nothing when compared with the eternal life God has promised.
Revelation 21:4 — One Day, Suffering Will Be Gone Forever
God has promised a future without death, sorrow, crying, or pain. The problems we face today will not last forever.

The links below have been gleaned from several places on this website for the sole purpose of encouraging you. The Bible is filled with examples of those who were righteous, but still suffered. You should be encouraged as you read how they dealt with their problems by calling on their Heavenly Father for help, exactly as you can do.

What should you do if you find yourself doubting God?

What's the end result of all this suffering? What's this all about? Doesn't God love me? What's in this for the Christian?

More Quotes of Encouragement:

"The Father's presence encircled Christ, and nothing befell Him but that which infinite love permitted for the blessing of the world. Here was His source of comfort, and it is for us. He who is imbued with the Spirit of Christ abides in Christ. The blow that is aimed at him falls upon the Savior, who surrounds him with His presence. Whatever comes to him comes from Christ. He has no need to resist evil, for Christ is his defense. Nothing can touch him except by our Lord's permission, and 'all things" that are permitted "work together for good to them that love God.' Romans 8:28. "

Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, page 71

"God in His great love is seeking to develop in us the precious graces of His Spirit. He permits us to encounter obstacles, persecution, and hardships, not as a curse, but as the greatest blessing of our lives. Every temptation resisted, every trial bravely borne, gives us a new experience and advances us in the work of character building. The soul that through divine power resists temptation reveals to the world and to the heavenly universe the efficiency of the grace of Christ."

Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, page 117

(Click the image and print that poster.)

"The trials of life are God's workmen, to remove the impurities and roughness from our character. Their hewing, squaring, and chiseling, their burnishing and polishing, is a painful process; it is hard to be pressed down to the grinding wheel. But the stone is brought forth prepared to fill its place in the heavenly temple. Upon no useless material does the Master bestow such careful, thorough work. Only His precious stones are polished after the similitude of a palace. "

Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, page 23, 24

"A fear of making the future inheritance seem too material has led many to spiritualize away the very truths which lead us to look upon [heaven] as our home. Christ assured His disciples that He went to prepare mansions for them in the Father's house. Those who accept the teachings of God's word will not be wholly ignorant concerning the heavenly abode. And yet, 'eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.' 1 Corinthians 2:9. Human language is inadequate to describe the reward of the righteous. It will be known only to those who behold it. No finite mind can comprehend the glory of the Paradise of God.

"In the Bible the inheritance of the saved is called 'a country.' Hebrews 11:14-16. There the heavenly Shepherd leads His flock to fountains of living waters. The tree of life yields its fruit every month, and the leaves of the tree are for the service of the nations. There are ever-flowing streams, clear as crystal, and beside them waving trees cast their shadows upon the paths prepared for the ransomed of the Lord. There the wide-spreading plains swell into hills of beauty, and the mountains of God rear their lofty summits. On those peaceful plains, beside those living streams, God's people, so long pilgrims and wanderers, shall find a home.

" 'My people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.' 'Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise.' 'They shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: . . . Mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.' " Isaiah 32:18; 60:18;65:21, 22

"There, 'the wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose.' 'Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree.' 'The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; . . . and a little child shall lead them.' 'They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain," saith the Lord." Isaiah 35:1; 55:13; 11:6, 9

"Pain cannot exist in the atmosphere of heaven. There will be no more tears, no funeral trains, no badges of mourning. 'There shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying: . . . for the former things are passed away.' 'The inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity. Revelation 21:4; Isaiah 33:24

(Click for the largest printable version.)

"There is the New Jerusalem, the metropolis of the glorified new earth, "a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God." "Her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal." "The nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into it." Saith the Lord: "I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in My people." "The tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God." Isaiah 62:3; Revelation 21:11, 24; Isaiah 65:19; Revelation 21:3.

"In the City of God "there shall be no night." None will need or desire repose. There will be no weariness in doing the will of God and offering praise to His name. We shall ever feel the freshness of the morning and shall ever be far from its close. "And they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light." Revelation 22:5. The light of the sun will be superseded by a radiance which is not painfully dazzling, yet which immeasurably surpasses the brightness of our noontide. The glory of God and the Lamb floods the Holy City with unfading light. The redeemed walk in the sunless glory of perpetual day.

"I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it." Revelation 21:22. The people of God are privileged to hold open communion with the Father and the Son. "Now we see through a glass, darkly." 1 Corinthians 13:12. We behold the image of God reflected, as in a mirror, in the works of nature and in His dealings with men; but then we shall see Him face to face, without a dimming veil between. We shall stand in His presence and behold the glory of His countenance.

"There the redeemed shall know, even as also they are known. The loves and sympathies which God Himself has planted in the soul shall there find truest and sweetest exercise. The pure communion with holy beings, the harmonious social life with the blessed angels and with the faithful ones of all ages who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb, the sacred ties that bind together "the whole family in heaven and earth" (Ephesians 3:15)--these help to constitute the happiness of the redeemed.

"There, immortal minds will contemplate with never-failing delight the wonders of creative power, the mysteries of redeeming love. There will be no cruel, deceiving foe to tempt to forgetfulness of God. Every faculty will be developed, every capacity increased. The acquirement of knowledge will not weary the mind or exhaust the energies. There the grandest enterprises may be carried forward, the loftiest aspirations reached, the highest ambitions realized; and still there will arise new heights to surmount, new wonders to admire, new truths to comprehend, fresh objects to call forth the powers of mind and soul and body.

"All the treasures of the universe will be open to the study of God's redeemed. Unfettered by mortality, they wing their tireless flight to worlds afar--worlds that thrilled with sorrow at the spectacle of human woe and rang with songs of gladness at the tidings of a ransomed soul. With unutterable delight the children of earth enter into the joy and the wisdom of unfallen beings. They share the treasures of knowledge and understanding gained through ages upon ages in contemplation of God's handiwork. With undimmed vision they gaze upon the glory of creation--suns and stars and systems, all in their appointed order circling the throne of Deity. Upon all things, from the least to the greatest, the Creator's name is written, and in all are the riches of His power displayed.

"And the years of eternity, as they roll, will bring richer and still more glorious revelations of God and of Christ. As knowledge is progressive, so will love, reverence, and happiness increase. The more men learn of God, the greater will be their admiration of His character. As Jesus opens before them the riches of redemption and the amazing achievements in the great controversy with Satan, the hearts of the ransomed thrill with more fervent devotion, and with more rapturous joy they sweep the harps of gold; and ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands of thousands of voices unite to swell the mighty chorus of praise.

"And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever." Revelation 5:13.

"The great controversy is ended. Sin and sinners are no more. The entire universe is clean. One pulse of harmony and gladness beats through the vast creation. From Him who created all, flow life and light and gladness, throughout the realms of illimitable space. From the minutest atom to the greatest world, all things, animate and inanimate, in their unshadowed beauty and perfect joy, declare that God is love."

The text above was taken from the last chapter of the The Great Controversy.

"In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls."