<p>One night a man saw a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord. While they walked, many incidents from his life’s journey flashed across the sky. <br /><br /></p>.<p>Looking behind, he noticed two sets of footprints on the beach. But when the most difficult moments of his life flashed before him, he looked behind and found only one set of footprints on the beach. This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord.<br /><br />“Lord, you promised to be with me always. But during the most difficult times in my life, I saw only one set of footprints behind me. Why did you leave me?”<br /><br />The Lord replied, “My precious child, during the most difficult times of your life, when you saw only one set of footprints, remember that those footprints were mine, not <br />yours. It is during those moments that I was carrying you on my shoulders.”<br /><br />The tendency to feel abandoned by God can come to us at various moments in our life. These thoughts could come to us when we are on the sickbed, or when our kith and kin have left us, or when a friendship or marital relationship is broken, or when people unjustly criticise us or when failure hits us hard.<br /><br />But in all these moments, we must realise that God carries us on His own shoulders, the weight of our suffering is upon Him. St Paul was so convinced that God was with him even in his worst moments when he was imprisoned, beaten, stoned, shipwrecked thrice, suffered hunger, thirst and sleeplessness (2 Corinthians 11:25). The Lord saw him through every trial but made him stronger.<br /><br />God’s reassuring presence in our life’s journey comes to us through the words of Prophet Isaiah: “Even when you're old, I'll take care of you. Even when your hair turns grey, I'll support you. I made you and will continue to care for you. I’ll support you and save you” (Isaiah 46:4).<br /><br />The Gospel of Luke portrays Jesus as the Good Shepherd who goes looking for a lost sheep that was probably struggling among thistles and thorns, or lost between the rocks. The Good Shepherd puts the sheep on his shoulders and returns joyfully.<br />There is a story of a lifeguard who was sitting near a crowded beach. <br /><br />A young girl approached him and asked, “Sir, with such crowd around here and so much of shouting and noise, how do you expect to hear the cry of someone drowning?” The lifeguard replied, “In all my years as a lifeguard, my eyes and ears have trained only to see and listen to cries of distress no matter what the noise around.” This is exactly the relationship between the Lord and those who trust in Him, as the Psalmist would say, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18).</p>
<p>One night a man saw a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord. While they walked, many incidents from his life’s journey flashed across the sky. <br /><br /></p>.<p>Looking behind, he noticed two sets of footprints on the beach. But when the most difficult moments of his life flashed before him, he looked behind and found only one set of footprints on the beach. This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord.<br /><br />“Lord, you promised to be with me always. But during the most difficult times in my life, I saw only one set of footprints behind me. Why did you leave me?”<br /><br />The Lord replied, “My precious child, during the most difficult times of your life, when you saw only one set of footprints, remember that those footprints were mine, not <br />yours. It is during those moments that I was carrying you on my shoulders.”<br /><br />The tendency to feel abandoned by God can come to us at various moments in our life. These thoughts could come to us when we are on the sickbed, or when our kith and kin have left us, or when a friendship or marital relationship is broken, or when people unjustly criticise us or when failure hits us hard.<br /><br />But in all these moments, we must realise that God carries us on His own shoulders, the weight of our suffering is upon Him. St Paul was so convinced that God was with him even in his worst moments when he was imprisoned, beaten, stoned, shipwrecked thrice, suffered hunger, thirst and sleeplessness (2 Corinthians 11:25). The Lord saw him through every trial but made him stronger.<br /><br />God’s reassuring presence in our life’s journey comes to us through the words of Prophet Isaiah: “Even when you're old, I'll take care of you. Even when your hair turns grey, I'll support you. I made you and will continue to care for you. I’ll support you and save you” (Isaiah 46:4).<br /><br />The Gospel of Luke portrays Jesus as the Good Shepherd who goes looking for a lost sheep that was probably struggling among thistles and thorns, or lost between the rocks. The Good Shepherd puts the sheep on his shoulders and returns joyfully.<br />There is a story of a lifeguard who was sitting near a crowded beach. <br /><br />A young girl approached him and asked, “Sir, with such crowd around here and so much of shouting and noise, how do you expect to hear the cry of someone drowning?” The lifeguard replied, “In all my years as a lifeguard, my eyes and ears have trained only to see and listen to cries of distress no matter what the noise around.” This is exactly the relationship between the Lord and those who trust in Him, as the Psalmist would say, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18).</p>