“I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name.” Isaiah 45:3
A very dear friend shared this passage with me this morning. He did so as an encouragement for me as I continue to wrestle with God’s presence/absence in the midst of pain and suffering in the work we do among the broken. More so, he gave it to me as I deal with my own brokenness in the process. With stories of families deciding to give up on healing, youth deciding to reject love, and young women becoming pregnant by strangers, the words treasures of darkness in this passage is perplexing to me.
Today we are on the brink of spending Thanksgiving at a time when our own family acknowledges the way our blood families have abandoned us. I lament with the countless others we serve who are travelling this same journey and ask, “Where are our riches stored in secret places?”
There are so many valuable answers for this such as, our kids, our health, our ministries, our home, our faith communities, and many more. For Thanksgiving meals we’ve often sat around tables gathered around others and named off various peoples, places, amenities, and comforts. However, working and healing with the poor gives you a different perspective. Much to be grateful for on the margins comes from the hard work of facing your weaknesses, your demons, and fighting to discover the treasures of darkness and riches stored in secret places of your soul.
The image and quote at the beginning of this post gives a powerful visual to what it feels like to come from madness, heal, and live lives of ongoing struggle. That is what it feels like for a large percentage of people I meet on the margins. That is what it feels like for me. The decision to keep going, to move forward, and to continue the journey is often a daily chore. As painful as that may be, as Isaiah states, it is this place where we are summoned by name by God himself. As much as it has been a strange journey to bear witness to this truth, it has been a very rewarding and life changing experience for me. One I will never forget. One I hope many more will find the courage to travel.
For this Thanksgiving, I will say for myself, and on behalf of the poor I know who would agree with me, “We thank God for our handicaps. For through them, we have found ourselves, our work, and our God.” Amen.
Sam Trujillo
searches for treasures in the darkness,
finds riches stored in secret places,
is summoned by name by God.
Comments (4)
yeah, i hear what you are saying. sometimes i am just like "come on God, how can you let all this pain continue, how come my friends can never get a break, how come the dark is so easy & the light seems nearly impossible? why am i this far into my spiritual journey and still so unstable inside?" but i agree with you that the instability, the messed-up-ness is what makes me need the hope of Christ. it's in my brokenness, my handicaps, that i can meet God. but i still have crazy Christian madness in my head, the logic i have been taught over the years, that "if i just...believed, prayed, fasted, claimed scripture, forgave, forgot...then everything would be a cakewalk. yeah, it doesn't work that way. that is not grace. and in the trenches we wrestle, we tire, we shake our fists, we get so disgusted with how unjust this world is that it's hard to see the riches, the treasures. sometimes i can't recognize them, sometimes i can. today was a day where i did. and i am thankful for that.
Posted by kathyescobar | November 20, 2007 4:09 PM
Posted on November 20, 2007 16:09
Good post, Sam. Good quote too. My grandfather was Hellen Keller's doctor for a while, and he said she was a wonderfully complex soul and was also his favorite patient. Peace to you.
Posted by Anonymous | November 21, 2007 10:18 AM
Posted on November 21, 2007 10:18
That quote really hits home. To be able to say that and mean it is some thing to be really thankful for. There is so much pain that is involved. The more I grow as some one to be loved, I have learned that God has givin us naturel gifts/talents, but where we hurt is a place God wants to use us. I find myself asking God why. I am not thankful for the hurt and pain I feel but I am thankful for the lights He brings in my dark place. I pray for myself and those I love will be able to confess that to God.
Posted by Uriah Quezada | November 21, 2007 2:48 PM
Posted on November 21, 2007 14:48
Sam, your eloquence writing of the dim and discouraged place of the soul is somehow comforting. I continue to pray for your heart's encouragement, and for Tiera's, and for your family. As I progress in my own journey, I have increasingly given up on expected outcomes. I don't know if that is good or not. It seems that "mother theresa" times of darkness accompany me more lately. It seems better when we share our lives with each other, even though that has it's own complications. I do trust this path though. I will continue with stubbornness if nothing else. I pray for more peace and quiet from the many intruding "voices" of internal shoulds and oughts- about my failures and lack of successes.
Hanging with you all makes it better, eyes ultimately on Him.
Posted by Sage Harmos | November 23, 2007 12:48 PM
Posted on November 23, 2007 12:48