Charles Dickens, in writing his book, A Tale of Two Cities, began his story by saying, “It was the best of times, and it was the worst of times.” That statement could apply to every era, every generation, and to every household in every country that has ever shared this beautiful earth. Too! It represents every period of our lives. Has there ever been a time when every aspect of your life was perfect? I believe the answer to that question is, and will always be, No!, There are always and always will be, some family issue that is painful or worrisome for us whether it be in the immediate family or in one of our many extended families. These worst of times include: a debilitating disease, serious accident, near death experience, etc. Whatever the problem, it represents a certain amount of misery for the person going through the experience. A misery, that we too, experience in an empathetic way. This world was created in such a way, by the Creator, to pose challenges for us. It was designed to test us. The Creator knew that the only way for us, His spirit offspring, to grow and to learn, was to be challenged. Many of these painful challenges have attached to them, uncomfortable short or long term reminders: Fortunately the wording is, “And it came to pass” it did not say “And it came to stay.” That should always give us some consolation. Can you imagine living a normal life on this earth and never experiencing pain or suffering of one kind or another? Such a person would leave this life with little or no compassion for others, for they would have no knowledge of pain, no experience with it and no understanding of other’s personal misery. Those experiences are how we learn compassion for each other.
Few may truly understand why Jesus had to suffer as he did. He, too, “the firstborn,” came to learn and to grow, just as we. When we come to know the truth and the reality of His life and experiences we will understand that, He came in the flesh, to become like us, living the perfect life and yet, a very difficult life, He has satisfied the demands of ‘Universal Justice’ by His willingness to endure the most extreme suffering and ultimately sacrifice, His very life in our behalf. His suffering and that final sacrifice made it possible for Him to be understanding and merciful in His judgment of all men. We are the recipients and benefactors of His unparalleled and painful sacrifice that he only endured because of His love for us.
“It is the best of times and the worst of times.” We will experience great joy and some suffering but life will go on, generation after generation. We must always remember that our suffering will never be such as His. Too! It is important to know that the things that we suffer make us stronger, make us more sympathetic and understanding of our fellow sojourners. Who of us will not be more appreciative of the times that are ‘best,’ when suffering has been temporarily suspended.; times when we feel good and all of our family and friends are doing well. We have to know that sooner or later a painful event will occur, ‘the worst of times,’ as they are often the times in which we grow wiser, stronger and more compassionate of our fellow travelers.