God, Remember Our Suffering

When you opened our reading for today, did you also read the word suffering and go, “whew, there’s a lot there for me”? Because I sure did. Suffering is a word that can feel formal or even dramatic, when in reality it’s just a synonym for pain, hardship, or distress. When you feel pain, your heart, body, and mind suffer. 

And suffering is sticky—it brings with it so many other pitfalls for our hearts to stumble over. I have this super-fun, emotional news ticker that runs internally whenever I’m in the middle of hurt, creating a cacophony of heavy feelings demanding my attention.

If I am actually still within myself, the beat that binds all of those feelings together is, “remember me, remember me, remember me.” And sometimes, that echoing fear of being forgotten ends up looming larger than any other hurt.

The truth for all of us today is, no matter how far away this truth feels, God remembers you. Whether you have a surprise suffering springing up or a hurt that’s overstaying its welcome, God is the one who sees precisely how all of these sufferings are sitting within your heart. 

David’s psalms are so helpful when we need to see God at work in the middle of suffering. As we read in Psalm 143 today, David is feeling the burn in his spiritual lungs as he sprints from the pursuing enemy to the safest refuge he knows: God’s presence. David shows us the way to finding God’s presence in those moments.

I remember the days of old; I meditate on all you have done; I reflect on the work of your hands.
I spread out my hands to you; I am like parched land before you. 
—Psalm 143:5–6

David remembers all God has done in the past, bridging the gap suffering creates between us and God. David doesn’t pull out receipts of work he has done to prove he is worthy to be noticed, but he reflects on God’s character and faithfulness as evidence that God will be the same in this new circumstance.

David also opens up about what he’s experiencing to God, not hiding anything from Him. He “spreads out his hands” before God, opening up about his fears even if they aren’t expressed in the perfect combination of surrender, wisdom, trust, etc. David actually shows the truest form of trust in God by unclenching his grip around those tender places, offering up his sufferings to God as that prayer of trust, wisdom, and surrender. 

Let’s offer each other up in prayer for the ways we need to be remembered today, trading our firm grip on our suffering for the hope that we are remembered by God.