and he can rescue us from the power of you, the king.
Daniel 3:17 (CSB)
Nobody should have to bury a child, but they do. My friends just did. My parents did too. And I’m trying so hard to remember for myself who God really is. Who is God when real life comes knocking with a blow so forceful you can’t stand against it? Who is God when everything you’ve planned for and dreamed of is altered, not just slightly, but forever?
Death. Divorce. Illness. Life has changed, and it will never look, feel, taste the same as it did before. Who is God through it all?
I do know this. It’s okay to question and doubt. Throughout the Bible, examples abound of people who wondered about God. Wonder is okay. It may even be good for us.
I read the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego — Daniel’s buddies who refused to bow down and worship King Nebuchadnezzar’s golden statue. The king gave them one more chance to “do the right thing” and bow before his shiny likeness, but still the three refused. Their rationale? “But even if he does not rescue us, we want you as king to know that we will not serve your gods or worship the gold statue you set up” (Daniel 3:18).
But even if he doesn’t . . .
These words, strangely, have given me so much hope. They have strengthened my faith in the past and they help today as I process the death of a too-young man.
But here’s what I know about God: He has not left our side. He is there, walking right beside us, weeping with us. He grieves with us. Because He loves us.
“Remind me who God is.” I’m just beginning to remember.
Remind your heart who God is today. He is the God who sees you and walks with you and grieves with you. He is the God who will always and forever love you.
This message was written by Shelly Wildman and appears in A Moment to Breathe, a 365-day devotional now available where books are sold.
Leave a Comment
Susannah says
Thanks Shelly for this reminder. I lost my younger sister just over 2 weeks ago. My dad lost a daughter, 17 years after losing his wife, our mum. We struggle to make sense of it all. The loss of our lives one. But gentle reminders that God is still GOD and that He’s with us through the storm help us maintain our sanity. I am so glad we have God as our heavenly Father.
Blessings
Susannah
Shelly Wildman says
Oh Susannah, I’m just now seeing this and want to say I am so very sorry for your loss. I know it’s fresh and so raw and painful right now. I also lost a sibling, my only brother, when I was a young girl, so I know that sorrow. Please know that God sees you and is weeping with you. Blessings to you. Shelly
Susannah says
Thank you Shelly.
Blessings
Susannah x x x
Edna Davidsen says
Hi Shelly,
Thanks for sharing When You’re Trying to Remember Who God Is with us.
So glad to be a reader of this blog.
Enjoyed reading it and found it valuable.
When we experience people in grief about the loss of their child; we naturally ask questions about the nature of God.
It’s so difficult to understand why it’s happening.
Death, divorce, illness can occur to any of us when we less expect it.
As the blog post states: “It’s OK to question and doubt.”
The story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego — Daniel’s buddies are there for a reason so we can learn and be inspired from them.
My favourite part of this particular blog post:
“But here’s what I know about God: He has not left our side. He is there, walking right beside us, weeping with us. He grieves with us.
Because He loves us.”
Blessings!
Edna Davidsen
Shelly Wildman says
Thank you, Edna. My experience of grief and loss has proven to me that God never wastes any of our pain.
Dee says
Thank you for writing this post. Last year on October 10th my brother lost his oldest son to suicide. He had just turned 21. It hurt deep. So deep I mourned for months and as I write this I have tears. He was my oldest nephew and although he lived in the next state over and I rarely seen him, he had a special place in my heart. The hardest part in it all was the pain I felt for my brother. I couldn’t help him. I didn’t know what to say or what to do and I couldn’t be there physically to comfort him, no one could. My heart hurt for my brother. He was alone going through this. All I could do was pray for him. He was angry at God and everyone else and there wasn’t anything I or anyone else could do to change his mind, except pray. He avoided family and friends for months, even our mother. He still has not spoken to me personally but I send him I love you’s though our mother. The anniversary is coming around next week and I have prayed that God give me the words to say to my brother. I wanted to send a card with encouraging words, but don’t know if it is appropriate or if I should send a letter at all. This post came at the perfect time. Thank you for obeying the spirit and writing this. Once I read it I immediately praised God for it. I’d like to print this and send it to him so that he can read that others have experienced the same hurt he has and that he is not alone. Please pray for him, his name is Jose.
Thank You and God Bless You!
Shelly Wildman says
Thank you for sharing your sorrow, Dee. I will pray for Jose. And I would encourage you to send that card and mention all the wonderful things you remember about your nephew. The most helpful thing my mom did after my brother died was to tell me it was OK to talk about him. People want to know that their loved one was remembered and loved. I am so sorry for your painful loss.
Stephanie Thompson says
Shelly, amazing isn’t it how the smallest phrases in scripture can speak volumes? The comfort is found in God’s unchanging character.
Shelly Wildman says
Yes, Stephanie! And I am so grateful to serve a God who never changes.
Hattie Damon says
Too much in my heart to write about here… It is to public of a forum. Suffice it to say that I have found the Lord to be The loyalist of friends in the deepest of trials. I have proven him to be oh so faithful! When he says, “I will never leave you nor for sake you” He means it.
“I am the Lord thy God and I change not”. What a comfort! He is so worthy of our love, our praise, our trust.
Shelly Wildman says
Bless you, Hattie. I understand the depth of sorrow, but also the height of gratitude to the Lord for being a true friend, a true comfort, a true sustaining grace in times of need. Thanks for sharing what you’ve learned.
Karen says
Thank you so much for this site, a friend sent me this a few years ago. I would lay in bed and read and read, to Just try and grab a hold of some kind of hope to hold on. I am divorced, and it has been a very very sad, painful time with this. It took me 5 years to be brave enough to do this. And now that I am. I feel worthless. I do not think I will ever be the same. And that scares me. I am tired of feeling hopeless