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The road Jesus walks is one of sorrow and suffering. He walks that road not because He enjoys it but because He enjoys us, and we are on that road. He desires us to be rescued, reconciled to God, and redeemed. With His death, burial, and resurrection, He makes that ugly road beautiful. He is the light in the darkness.

God saw fit to take on our pain and consequences and bear the burden of our dysfunction. It took Jesus’ life. And still, He continues to suffer with us in the wake of that sacrifice. He is patiently enduring our faults and failures as His sons and daughters and lovingly getting in the puddles of life with us as He helps us out of them. He mourns with us in the loss of a loved one. He endures alongside us the pain of unwarranted trauma. He grimaces with us at the consequences of our sins. He sighs deeply with us over the regrets of lost opportunity. And in all this, He helps lift our eyes from the ruts and muck of this treacherous road that is life in a sinful world. He suffers so that we may have hope that does not disappoint.

HE IS OUR HOPE. Our hope is with us in the darkest places and will never forsake us; our hope triumphed over death itself and is placed in authority over all things. Jesus suffers with us from HIS cross to OUR grave. He isn’t suffering for suffering’s sake; it’s for the sake of our hope.

Reflection: As you go about your day, anytime it comes to mind, say, “You are here, I am here, and I am yours.” Be it quietly in a whisper while in the grocery store or at the top of your lungs in the car, remind yourself of His presence and your surrender into His loving company.

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