Hardship, Loss, and the Abiding Presence of God's Spirit

Life is hard. This is one reason God created us for community. Relationships with Him and with others are essential to living a good life, and it is His presence in our lives that makes the difficult times not only bearable but joyful. Gordon Fee reminds us that “Nothing else can take the place of presence.”[1] It is the abiding presence of the Spirit in His people that enables us to endure the losses that we experience in our everyday lives.

            For instance, this past weekend, our beloved family dog, Shadow, who was with us for almost a decade, passed away. Shadow came into our lives when, as a family, we needed to be showered with unconditional love, greeting each of us with joy and excitement, and serving as a witness to both the joys and sorrows our family of six endured. He sat in silent sympathy when things were tough and rejoiced as we celebrated the milestones, often with playful abandon. It was heart-wrenching to watch our friend and family guardian lose his appetite and ability to carry himself from one place to the next. Saying goodbye was not easy, and his presence cannot be replaced by a mere picture. Through it all, our family relied on the Spirit of God to carry us and our beloved doggy. The Spirit was truly God's Presence amid the pain.

            Yet despite the inevitable losses we endure, not only does the Spirit remind us that He is present in pain, but that He is the Giver of Life. No sooner had we lost our beloved Shadow than we were blessed with a new pup, Zoe. She will never replace him, but as my husband stated, we can grieve for Shadow while making room in our hearts for Zoe. Zoe means life, and she is ten weeks old, full of rambunctious playfulness that keeps our household on its toes. We also had the added blessing of watching several chicks hatch from their shell. As they struggled to find their feet in this world outside the confines of their shell and I pondered the circle of life, I was reminded that death has been defeated.

The same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in me and everyone who has embraced the cross and all it represents. Behind every death, there is a resurrection. Paul described it this way:

When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him. Colossians 2:13-15 NASB95

There will be a day when what is corruptible will put on incorruptibility, and “then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, ‘Death is swallowed up in victory’” (1 Cor. 15:54 NKJV).

            As you experience the hardships and losses of life, it is my prayer that you will know the abiding Spirit of Christ, who lessens our tears and breathes new life into every day. May you be able to echo the Psalmist, saying, “You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness. That my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever” (Ps. 30:11-12 NASB95). May you rejoice in the Spirit of God, the Giver of Life.

[1] Gordon Fee, Paul, the Spirit, and the People of God, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2023, 9.