Enduring Hardship with the Psalmist

More thoughts from the WG 08 conference. These thoughts won't necessarily be in order as they happened during the conference, but as they come to mind...

Before David Powlinson spoke during the Friday morning session about Enduring Hardship with the Psalmist, a man, Gene Mercado, was asked to share his testimony of his life the past year. As his name was mentioned and when he began to spoke, I recognized his name and his story. In the past year, his fiancee Madonna Aristorenas passed away from a long battle with cancer. Her story was chronicled on the Radical Womanhood blog. From the blog, I felt I had a small window into this woman and couple's life and that window became larger as Gene shared his heart with over 1600 people present of what he went through as he mourned his fiancee and all the plans for their future, as well as how God led him through using the Psalms.

As you can imagine, there was not too many dry eyes in the room. I was thankful and humbled that Gene would share about his struggles, thoughts and doubts of God during this time. I was also thankful too for what God was doing in Gene's life as well. It was very apparent that only God, through his word and the body of believers, could help Gene through all this.

Why do I share this story? Well, I think it gave me hope that whatever difficult trials or hardships come, God can and does help and comfort his children.

Tho' Satan should buffet
tho' trials shoudl come
let this blest assurance control
That Christ hath regardeth
my helpless estate
and hath shed his own blood for my soul.
~Horatio Spafford