Season Of Separation
I will sing of the Lord’s unfailing love forever!
Young and old will hear of your faithfulness.
Your unfailing love will last forever.
Your faithfulness is as enduring as the heavens. Psalm 89:1-2
One of my saddest yet enduring stories about people of faith is with Mother Teresa. Of course, we all know about the humanitarian side of her and how much outpour of love she had for others. What is often lost is in her last years of her life how she often felt distant from God. This narrative isn't a tale of doubt but a powerful testament to the resilience required to sustain faith. Mother Teresa's journey, marked by her service amidst profound suffering, led her to express, “I want God with all the power of my soul — and yet between us there is terrible separation.” If someone as devout as Mother Teresa could feel such spiritual isolation, it's understandable that we, too, might experience similar challenges.
Feeling distant from God is a natural feeling in our journey of faith. We should not interpret it as God is intentionally pushing us away or we have necessarily lost our way to Him. Rather, it is a phase of spiritual growth, meant to fortify our faith, reminding us that God is always present, even when His presence isn't palpable. Early in my high school years, my mother was in the hospital for a few weeks. After visiting her each day, I would go home, eat dinner, study my homework, and rest for the next day. When I was home, I did not behave as if I had been freed from the encampment of my mother’s rule. I just continued to focus on doing things as I had done when she was there. This was not because I feared her, and do not get me wrong. My mom ruled our apartment home with an iron fist. It was the love I had for her and faith that doing what was needed would be of help to her when she would be released. Love is the great motivator when it comes to having faith. As David points out, it is God’s unfailing love for us that is connected to His faithfulness. Along those lines, our love should be equally as unfailing to have certainty even when most would question their relationship with Him. God’s constant reaffirmation in our lives should always be evidence to His presence when there are doubts.
God's faithfulness is a beacon during our darkest moments. Perhaps we have momentary lapses in judgment or missteps that my lead us to feel a level of distance from God. Perhaps, it is just as one said a season of our faith where God may seem far away. Yet, Jesus Himself would never doubt the relationship with the Father for even when the moment had come for Him to pay the ultimate sacrifice, He simply prayed in the garden of Gethsemane, “My Father! If this cup cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will be done.” (Matthew 26:42b) Thus, in the words of Paul to the Hebrews, “So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe.” (Hebrew 4:14) What season are you in your journey of faith? How can God’s love for you be a reminder of your faithfulness to Him? My prayer is that we can harken on God’s truth and together sing the old hymnal, “Great is Thy Faithfulness” in our season of separation. Amen.