This Easter, Find Comfort at the Cross

Happy memories color the Easters of my youth: family egg hunts before church; a pancake breakfast followed by a service filled with white lilies, girls in pastel dresses, and inspirational music and preaching. The reason for the celebration, of course, is Jesus’ resurrection and the empty tomb—the evidence that our Redeemer lives. 

But the joy of Resurrection Sunday can appear to dim in the shadow of pain and loss. In 2021, I suffered a miscarriage before Easter and felt anything but gladness on that day. My aching heart felt that it didn’t belong in a place of so much joy.

The truth my Savior reminded me is that Easter is possible only because of the cross three days before; that there is no one like Jesus who understands our pain; and that there is no better time than Easter to draw near to Him. 

What I learned is that pain and God’s love are paradoxically connected. In our pain, we have the chance to run into His embrace and experience His love on a deeper level. 

Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus

Perhaps the biggest lie we can believe is that God does not see us or care. He blesses other people. Why does He not bless us? He must somehow love us less because we are going through this situation.

The truth is that God “did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all” (Romans 8:32 NKJV). Let that reality sink in. God the Father cared so much for us that He turned His back on Jesus. The separation from His Father was so excruciating that Jesus cried out from the cross, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matthew 27:46 NKJV).

Why? Because “God so loved the world” (John 3:16 NKJV). Because God so loved you and me. 

The pain we experience in this life should not make us question His love for us but reveal it to us more fully. This pain isn’t permanent. If we accept God’s gift of salvation, we never have to experience separation from our heavenly Father. Paul wrote, “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39 NKJV).

The key is that we must tear our eyes off ourselves and turn our focus to Jesus, remembering His sacrifice for us. (This refocusing is hard to do when our emotions are raging!) When we do, we can rest assured of how much He loves us, even in the middle of our pain.

Find Comfort in His Wounded Side

The way to peace is not pretending that life’s okay. Rather, peace comes from being raw and real with God and drawing close to His side, the same one that was pierced for us (John 19:34).

In those hard days following my miscarriage, I didn’t find the reason for my pain, but I did find the ultimate answer to it. Jesus, the “Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief” (Isaiah 53:3 NKJV), knows and understands our hurts more than anyone else could. 

He not only shares in them with us, but He has also provided the means for our healing. “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5 NKJV).

Though our pain may seem unbearable now, we can know our Healer, the One who will one day wipe all tears away from our eyes (Isaiah 25:8). He meets with us in our hurt and shares in our suffering.

Looking back on that hard Easter a few years ago, I can now see God’s purpose in it. I have walked alongside so many friends who have experienced miscarriage. I would not have been able to comfort them and cry with them if I had not shared in this grief—for many would never have confided in me if I hadn’t been open about my own story. 

If you’re struggling with hurt or grief this Easter, know that you belong more than ever where there is joy, even if you do not feel joyful yourself. You do not have to pretend to be happy or fake it. You can be honest with Jesus and find comfort close to Him, for He loves you more, and understands sorrow better, than anyone else.