Copying from the previous post:

“In closing [the pastor] said, ‘The most significant thing you can do is to build into the lives of others.’ This is something every one of us can do. Peter echoes Jesus’ call to love each other: ‘…love one another deeply, from the heart’ (1Peter 1:22) This is a love that will feel others’ joys as well as their pain.”

 

How eagerly I absorbed these lessons! Like a child of God I obediently followed what the sermons taught, believing in all earnestness that they came from God himself. I found satisfaction and healing in being there for those who suffered like myself. And I loved those I served, joining with them in their joys and pain. 

But for some reason the work I did in response to Sundays’ sermons eventually counted for nothing. I had been respected for years but in the end was made to feel worthless. Deeply hurt. Why? What did I do wrong?

So God, where were you in all this? Why is it so difficult to find you today? Why is it so difficult to keep living?