Suffering In Nicholas Wolterstorff's Lament For A Son

Most people in the world have an idea of who or what God is. Whether they believe in Him or not, people have thoughts that they use to define God. A lot of people have an imagine of God being all-powerful and happy, but do they really know that God suffers along with us? In the book “Lament for a Son” the author Nicholas Wolterstorff goes through the emotions he encountered while facing the loss of his twenty-five-year-old son who died in a mountain climbing accident. Wolterstrorff questions the role of God in life and is unsure on how to deal with his grief. Just like the book “Lament for a Son,” I believe God suffers with us and that we never suffer alone. Grief is an intense feeling of sorrow caused by the loss of something or someone.

There are many things around the world that are occurring right now that are making God suffer along with many others. For example, in my own personal life, I experience a pain of suffering every summer when I have to leave my family in Italy behind to return back to the United States. With my mother’s side of the family living in another country, I take advantage of every opportunity I have to see them. My grandfather is turning 95 and my grandmother is turning 79; their fully lived lives may come to an end within a blink of an eye. Growing up with them, the hardest thing I’ve had to do in life was move to the United States knowing that my grandparents had to stay behind. Leaving them behind every summer makes my heart ache because I never know if it will be our last goodbye. My grandparents are the two most important people in my life. I try to spend every minute of my free time with them, enjoying their life stories and learning new card games. Vacations do come to an end and sadly it is time to once again say good-bye to my loved ones. Tears immediately begin to fall down my face and I ask God “Why do I have to go?” A quote that stuck out to me from the book “Lament for a Son” was, “I didn’t know how much I loved him until he was gone” (Wolterstroff, 13). This quote is so powerful because many people don’t realize how fast a life can I come

These people need God in their lives, they need a sense of hope. I believe God is suffering with these people because he never meant for something this bad to enter their lives for that he feels the pain they are going through. My life is not worth God suffering over, there are people with much bigger problems in their lives than mine. I live in a two parent home, I’ve always had three meals on the dinner table, I have never experienced a death in my family and I am surrounded by people who love me. Many families around the world have no home and are living under a bridge, may only get a meal every so often, hearing about a death is no news and family does not exist. I know that when I need God, he is there to listen to my problems but I do not want them to suffer over me when I am not in need. I know that when time comes, and I begin to need God to suffer with me, he will. My life is not worth God suffering for because there are such greater problems in other peoples lives. I look at my life and think about how privileged I am for the life God has given