I found myself weeping as I stood in the greeting card aisle of the store today as I tried to find a sympathy card that didn’t sound so very trite and full of empty sentimentalism void of true comfort to send to some friends. I wept as I read empty sentimentalities and thought of the deep, deep pain my friends must be suffering today. I did finally settle on a card and added my own feeble words to send, but, oh, how my heart hurts to contemplate the sudden and unexpected grief my friends are experiencing.
I know that these friends know the Savior and that we who know Jesus, when we grieve we do so with deep and abiding hope, but grieve, and grieve deeply this side of Heaven we still do. And I believe our compassionate Savior sees those tears, every single one of them, and He intercedes for His own. But, oh, how we see through the glass darkly here during the journey of life some days.
I once heard Sinclair Ferguson say, “The boasts of one Christmas letter may be the griefs of later ones.” I know I’m not feeling much like writing a happy, happy, happy Christmas letter this year. I know too many for whom this Christmas will be a bittersweet one. This has been a hard year.
And yet, there IS hope. This world is not our home. Peter tells us that this life is fleeting, but a little while. (1 Peter 1:6-9) Jesus has conquered the grave. We have real hope because of His resurrection. When we abide in Him, resting the weight of all our hope on Him, we trust that His promises are true. For those who repent of their sin and trust in the righteousness of Jesus, we have a sure and steadfast anchor for our souls. He alone is the way to peace with God, and that peace is a sure and steady anchor.
I recently learned this hymn, and it has become a favorite, as I often find much comfort in songs that remind me of truth, not empty sentimentalism, but real comfort that lasts and points to our sure Savior.
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