30th Sunday in Ordinary Time
R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
Written by Anonymous
I once read the story of Corrie Tenboom, a Christian living in Holland during the Nazi occupation. Her family, whose home had become a safe house for Jews, was reported to authorities and they were sent to Ravensbrück concentration camp. Naturally, when she arrived with her sister Betsie, both were tempted to despair. It seemed impossible to live the words of today’s psalm, “bless the Lord at all times.” However, drawing on their deep faith, they began to praise God. They thanked Him that they had not been separated, that their father was still alive, and they even thanked Him for the lice in their cabin which were making the women’s lives miserable. When Corrie tried to challenge Betsie on this last act of praise, Betsy reminded her sister that the Lord instructs us to praise Him IN ALL THINGS, not only in the comfortable times, but in times of distress, confusion, joy and sorrow. “His praise shall ever be in my mouth.”
Corrie and her sister had smuggled a copy of the four gospels into the camp. Shockingly, while block after block were searched, theirs was untouched. Their cabin was the only block with lice. And it was the only block that the Nazi’s never raided…because of the lice. As a result, the Gospels were never taken from them. In a place where fear, suffering, chaos and evil raged, hope, peace, love and even forgiveness began to flourish in the hearts of those women. God had not abandoned them. And they never ceased to praise Him “Let my soul glory in the LORD”.
Suffering can sometimes cause us to lose sight of who God really is, a good, loving God who “hears the cry of the poor.”. Our gaze can get misdirected and instead of keeping our eyes fixed firmly on the Lord, we become focused on ourselves. Why is this happening to me? How will I get through this? I didn’t ask for this… Often, our first response to suffering, is to recoil. Without God, suffering is meaningless. However, united to Christ’s suffering on the cross, it is now a powerful redemptive tool for our sanctification “those who are crushed in spirit he saves.”
Suffering will always be shrouded in mystery. It is a challenge each one of us must face. We have no control over what the trial will be, nor when it will be, nor for how long it will last. The only control we have, is our response. We have an invitation to face all tribulations trusting that “the Lord hears the cry of the poor” and choosing to “bless the Lord at all times”.
How do you approach suffering? Do you bless the Lord at all times, or just when it is convenient?
Pray with today’s psalm.