2012 Lenten Reflection Series
Sweeping Up the Heart: A Father’s Lament for His Daughter (Paul Nisly. Good Books, 1992) provides both a raw and a rich narrative of a Messiah College English professor’s wrestling with God (and himself) after his daughter Janelle’s death. As you may remember from last week, several months after her Messiah College graduation and the beginning of the practice of nursing, Janelle was struck by a tractor-trailer rig. The truck rear-ended several cars, then smashed over into the lane of oncoming traffic and right into her vehicle.
Paul opens Chapter 11: Through Flood and Fire with Psalm 88 and Isaiah 43. Then he turns to three questions:
- Should believers suffer?
- Where is God when we suffer?
- Why does God suffer?
Imagine yourself as a colleague or a student of Paul, who in addition to being an academic serves as a bishop in the Mennonite Church:
- How would you have counseled him?
- How would you have avoided offering words similar to those of Job’s friends?
After taking a few minutes to walk through the above scenario, I encourage you to reflect on how you have addressed Paul’s three questions in your own life and/or those of close friends, family, and colleagues.
Wondering what insights Paul has to share with us? . . .Â