H.O.P.E.

CHAPTER 1
Why Me, Lord?


By the time I was in my twenties, I had endured an enormous amount of adversity, and I couldn’t help but ask, “Why me, Lord?” The answer came to me one Sunday morning from a sermon that Bob, my husband, preached. The scripture God had inspired him to share that day was 2 Corinthians 1:3–4. I had read those verses many times before, but on that particular day it was as if God was speaking directly to me—the words leapt right off the page! Those precious words stirred my heart as they never had before.
Second Corinthians 1:3–4 (NLT) says:
All praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the source of every mercy and the God who comforts us. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When others are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given to us.
When Bob reached the part “so that” we can comfort others, it all became crystal clear to me. Those two little words kept echoing in my mind and gave me my reason why—so that I could comfort others too. This was my reason, my purpose. Everything I had gone through, all my pain and suffering, wasn’t going to be for nothing. God could use my hardships so that I could be a comfort to others, just as he was for me.
I thought my trials were something I was supposed to endure, even though I knew God was my comforter. Now I knew there was a reason for it all as he would use that pain to help others. I do not claim to have gone through every trial known to man, but I now know that my suffering will be used by God.
He does not tell us that he will comfort us in “some” of our troubles; he says all of them. For every single troubling thing we endure, God will continue to come alongside us to render aid in our time of need.
My life changed that day. This particular verse of scripture spoke to me in a way that gave my life new meaning, and it showed me a ministry that our Lord could use for his benefit. I have listened to hundreds of my husband’s powerful sermons preached over the years. When he spoke from the pulpit, he always spoke straight from God’s Word, which gave me insight on how to incorporate those messages into my daily life. But on this day, the scripture he spoke about, which was in God’s perfect timing, was the answer to my question, “Why me, Lord?”
The first part of verse 3 states that God is the Father of mercy. He has compassion for us; therefore he comforts us. What a wonderful blessing! As we walk daily in our relationship with God, he shows mercy as we feel our pain, whether that pain is physical, emotional, or spiritual.
The second part of the verse, which says he comforts us, then requires action. To comfort someone, you must first hear what the person is saying, and then you can encourage them by being willing to share your understanding. Listening says to them clearly that you care and want to help ease their pain.
The first part of the verse shows tenderness, while the second part regarding comfort shows validity. In 2 Corinthians, God used Paul and Timothy to help the Corinthians in their own affliction. God provided them with help and comfort so they could transmit that comfort to others. In all this, it helped them to praise God even more!
The comfort that we receive from our heavenly Father isn’t just for us. He wants us to do something in response to his comfort. We all go through adversities so that (2 Corinthians 1:4) we receive our assignment. We must carry out the second part in order to make our pain count for something good.
Once you have experienced anguish from any sort of trouble, you can identify with others who are hurting. You can then understand how it feels to be in pain and can put your actions into comforting them, just as God did for you.
When the scripture states “in all our troubles” or “distress” (as translated in some Bible versions) it means those caused by painful pressure. The comforting comes from the help that removes that pressure so that one may breathe again. It literally means “so that one may bear the affliction without fainting.”
There were many times in my life when I felt I couldn’t breathe or handle one more ounce of pain, physical or emotional. Only by knowing that I had God’s comfort was I able to gain relief from that pressure in order to carry on. Now I can use that same comfort to reach out and comfort others who share my plight.