I recently watched a movie called Silence, starring Liam Neeson, Andrew Garfield, and Adam Driver. In this movie, two Catholic missionaries travel to Japan during the 17th century, hunting for their missing mentor. Japan, however, is closed to anything Christian, and the faith of these men is tested daily. They go through very difficult trials, including starvation and torture. Many of their converts are killed or tortured. This entire movie contains one message: Where is God during the difficult times? Where is God when my converts are being crucified and I am about to be killed for my faith?

     Growing up in Uganda, I have experienced a lot of things that people would call “tough”. I have been through drought, famine, sand storms, civil strife, riots, and many others. Some people have been through even worse- they experience torture, suffering, and yes, even death. One of the hardest things in life today is to experience the death of a loved one. During this time, many shake their fists at God and cry, “Where are you? Don’t you care about me?” This level of grief is perfectly normal. Jesus himself experienced grief, as we see in John 11:1-44. However, during these terrible times, the most difficult thing a human man or woman can do is to turn put our hands together and pray. We are emotional beings, and as such, we grieve. This alone separates us from the other inhabitants of this huge dirt ball we call Earth. We experience grief and trauma on a whole different level. Despite this, we must remember- the only thing that will help us through our grief and pain is God. He alone has the power to remove our pain, even if we can’t see Him working. This is the wonder of God. He works, and we do not see it. In the movie of Life, God is the director- unseen, but the key part of every scene. When the credits roll, the first thing we must do is to cry, “God, forgive my pride! You were there the whole time, and I did not see you!” God is there, even in the tough times.

I would just like to make a shoutout to Mrs. Sue Rosier, blogger, and author of Standing Up to Parkinson’s. She has a wonderful blog, found here, and she writes about a very difficult subject. If you know anyone with Parkinson’s, I recommend you talk to her.

Also, check out the trailer to the movie Silence right here.