In the midst of pain and sorrow we have many options to turn to. For some that turn ends up in a bottle, or in a syringe or in a work schedule. The try to numb pain by covering it with pleasure that is only temporary. They may turn to sex for a brief high that gets their mind off their fear or the turmoil. The world, society, is a master at turning toward things to soothe the troubled soul. People come home from a hard days work and turn on mindless television and escape through entertainment so they don't have to deal with the stress at work. They gorge themselves with food so they don't have to be bored with a meaningless life. In the midst of all those "coping" mechanisms the real answer is found in the faith and character of God:
Amos 5:8
He who made the Pleiades and Orion
And changes deep darkness into morning,
Who also darkens day into night,
Who calls for the waters of the sea
And pours them out on the surface of the earth,
The Lord is His name.
In the midst of Israel's fall God noticed the way they turned to things to solve their pain and sorrow. They built houses and surrounded themselves with all the wrong things. They planted vineyards in which to glean grapes for wine to get drunk (5:11). But, God knows the real answer to pain, sorrow and torment. It is in the character of God. It is in the fact that He made the heavens and the earth. Those stars we see at night a pretty but they are also a vivid picture of the awesome power of an eternal God. When that sun rises in the morning and darkness is changed to light that is a relevant picture of what God can and does do in the heart. When we have a hurricane that wipes out entire cities that is God calling the "water's of the sea and pouring them out on the surface of the earth" because He can. The Lord is His Name!!! In all the indictments against the nation and all the things He says to them the most powerful message He wants them to know is that He is a mighty and awesome God.
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