Why would God give me a miracle only to snatch it away?” she cried.
It wasn’t a question, really; it was a wail.
She had asked if she could talk to me for a few minutes in private during the lunch break of a conference where I was teaching.
“We were told we couldn’t have children,” she began. “We tried for years and years, and we’d almost given up when I discovered I was pregnant.”
Light flickered for a moment in her eyes and was quickly extinguished. “He lived for four hours,” she said. “Why would God do that? Why would He give me a miracle only to snatch him away?”
There was nothing I could say. Sometimes the well of human suffering is too deep for words. All I could do was hold her for a while. I prayed for her before she got up to leave—and I prayed to Someone who understands what it’s like to watch a Son die. Once more I found myself drawn back to a little verse in Luke’s gospel. It’s a verse that’s often overlooked, but I think God has tucked a tiny puzzle piece into nine words: “Blessed is the one who is not offended by me” (Luke 7:23 ESV).
You may remember the story that precedes these nine words. John the Baptist is being held in the dungeon of King Herod’s palace. This man of the wilderness is confined to a dismal, dank cellar. As if that isn’t painful enough, John is tormented by doubt. So tormented that he asks his friends to go to Jesus and ask Him this strange question: “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” (Luke 7:19 ESV).
Why is this question strange? Because John had spent his whole life preparing for the moment when God would reveal the Messiah and he would have the joy of crying out, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29 ESV). John watched that day when the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus like a dove, and John heard the voice of God declare, “This is my beloved Son” (Matthew 3:17 ESV).
But now John was in a dark prison, and doubts and lies slithered around his cell: What if you got it all wrong, John? What if you identified the wrong man? Besides, where is Jesus now?
Longing for an answer that would flood his cell with light, John sent his friends to Jesus. But Jesus’ response was, “Tell John that I am doing the things the Messiah does,” and “Blessed is the one who is not offended by me” (Luke 7:23 ESV).
In effect, Jesus was asking, “Will you love a God who’s not going to get you out of that prison? Will you worship a God you don’t understand? Will you still follow Me when your heart is broken?”
Times like these test our faith. Whatever dark cell you find yourself in today, will you worship God? If you choose to, He says that you are blessed.
God is always worthy of worship, even when we’re in the dark.
Five Minutes in the Word 
[Jesus] answered [John the Baptist’s disciples], “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”
Luke 7:22–23 ESV
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.
Hebrews 11:1 NIV
Test me, LORD, and try me, examine my heart and my mind; for I have always been mindful of your unfailing love and have lived in reliance on your faithfulness.
Psalm 26:2–3 NIV
The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.
1 Corinthians 10:13