He's not enough

I came across a link via my Twitter feed last Saturday. It was the song, "Great Reward" by Tim Timmons. I had never heard of him or his music before, but I listened to the song and appreciated his raw honesty. He sings, "I trust in You...I will trust You, Lord...Help me trust you more..." I echo those lyrics. I believe there comes a time during our trials that we must speak these words, aloud preferably. We must profess the truth, even if we're not "feeling" it or don't necessarily even believe it in the moments of agony.



At the beginning of the video, Tim asks, "What if Jesus is actually enough to walk them through this? What if he's actually enough to walk my wife through this, whatever happens with me? What if he's enough for me in my life?" He replies, "The answer's been no, he's not enough." My knee-jerk response to his comment was, "Yes! He is enough!"

Now, I'm not sure what he means by his comment, and I hesitate to assume what it means. In fact, I actually  emailed Mr. Timmons to see if he would elaborate on his comment. Unfortunately, I haven't received a reply. But after a bit more contemplation, I wonder if he means that Jesus is enough, but he's not enough. He's not enough to take away the cancer. He's not enough to take away the pain. He's not enough to take away the grief. Our lives as Christians are not pain or trouble free. They are not void of sorrow, testing, or times of despair. Being a Christian is not a "get out of ____ free" card. He's not enough in our limited scope of vision.

But He is enough. He is enough to see us through the chemo and radiation. He is enough to be with us in the pain. He is enough to comfort us in our grief. He is enough to walk before us, behind us, and beside us in the trials and testing. He is enough in God's unlimited view of eternity. He is enough because He is our great reward. He is our great reward when we trust Him despite all evidence to the contrary. He is our great reward when we trust Him in spite of unanswered prayers. He is our great reward even when He says "No."

Job says, "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him..." We can trust Jesus because He died for us. Though God permits devastating circumstances to come into our lives, He remains faithful to every one of His promises. This is why we can trust Him. He promises us His presence. His very name, Emmanuel, means "God with us." We may not understand His plan, but we can trust His promises. "Earth has no sorrow that Heaven cannot heal." (Thomas Moore) 

He is not enough. For many, the cancer remains. For many, the grief remains. For many, the trials continue. But He is enough. He gives us His strength, His peace, His joy, His life, His all. He is enough. May we say, "I trust in You...I will trust You, Lord...Help me trust you more..."