God Is With Us

Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil;

for you are at my side.

He guides me in right paths

for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk in the dark valley

I fear no evil; for you are at my side

With your rod and your staff

that give me courage.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus explains to the people the power God has over evil.

“Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’”

When I was younger, I took these kinds of scriptures to mean that if I followed Jesus, if I did what was right, no ill would ever come to me. If I followed the rules, God would keep me safe.

But we know, as we get older and wiser, that bad things do happen to good people. Maybe not all the time, maybe almost never. But there are times when we, the people who follow Jesus and love him, will suffer. Or we will watch other people suffer, we will watch people we know and love walk through the “valley of the shadow of death.”

The truth is that the peace and light that Jesus promises doesn’t mean we will never suffer, but that our suffering will never be more than we can endure. Somehow, even in the face of tragedy and sadness, Jesus is there. The peace he brings is all we need. Whatever it is -- a small inconvenience, a great injustice -- Jesus is there for us, offering whatever comfort we need.

And Jesus knows suffering. As we will witness during Holy Week, Jesus faced almost unbearable fear and suffering -- and he didn’t want it! He begged his father to let the cup pass, if it was at all possible.

But it wasn’t. His suffering had to be endured, for the sake of us all. And because of that, Jesus did what he needed to do.

Jesus knew suffering. He understands it. He doesn’t claim that it is easy or fun, but what he promises is peace and grace to endure whatever we must. In the end, none of it is more than we can handle, because Jesus is there with us, holding our hand as we walk the way.

-Rachel Swenson Balducci