Grieving
has a beginning, middle and an end; groaning on the other hand is a different
story. Groaning will not end until the
sons of God have been revealed. People
experience grief over specific events in life.
Groaning is so comprehensive that it involves every miniscule aspect of
creation from the tiniest blade of grass to the incomparable soul of man. I know
that I will push through my grief, but my heart will never stop groaning and I will
not be alone. Romans 8:22-23 says, We know that the whole
creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the
present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the
Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the
redemption of our bodies.
Groaning
is a gift from God that helps us find peace and community from our common
plight of being distanced from Him. God’s
word tells me that all of creation groans.
I understand how the creation groans when I look at my withered
hydrangea bush. It was planted too late
in the heat of summer to be given much of a chance. If it had words to express its groans, I’m
sure they would be about the fact that it has a beautiful flower that wants to
bloom but cannot because Texas summers are just too grueling. But as I was eating a mango this morning, I
wondered. What does a mango have to
groan about? This particular mango was
cut at the perfect ripeness yielding the sweetest of tastes and texture. I thought this mango must be immune from
groaning. Then I remembered my friend
telling about her island vacation when she learned that she was allergic to
mangos after her lips puffed up like a blowfish. That’s when I realized even the mango had
something to groan about. It wants to give its delicious refreshment to
everyone who will take a bite, but not all can indulge.
The
sense of groaning brought forth in Romans 8 presents a realistic explanation of
what we all feel about being in this world.
There are lots of good, sweet and touching days. But there is not one day that is perfect. There is never a full day when any one of us
remains in constant touch with our Creator and has perfect understanding of
what our life and this world is all about.
For that we groan.
Groaning
can seem such a horrid word, one we don’t want to admit we feel or experience
occasionally, and definitely not all the time.
A hopeless, pessimistic existence
is not what is described in this passage.
The passage speaks of groaning in the context of childbirth and firstfruits
of the Spirit. The groaning is an expression
of what is not quite right but what is hoped for. The groaning gives articulation to what is
missing. What we groan for is our
adoption to sonship and the redemption of our bodies. This spiritual groaning is best compared to
the groaning of a mom in childbirth rather than a person in agony after an
injury.
Groaning
is for a lifetime, but not forever.
Jesus made certain of that. But
in between now and then, we groan. When
we groan, we are never alone. The whole
creation groans with us.
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