If God has already declared the ungodly righteous, if He has already clothed sinners in the obedience of Christ, if He has already moved toward us in mercy when we had nothing to offer, then suffering cannot be interpreted as divine rejection. It cannot be a sign that God has stepped back. It cannot be punishment in the judicial sense. The Judge has already rendered His verdict.

I thought I understood You, Lord. I had built a tidy picture in my mind, a God who moved in predictable ways, who answered prayers the way I expected, who shielded those who loved Him from the worst of the world.

If Amos 9 were an online video it would be preceded by a warning that said the content contains images some may find difficult, viewer discretion is advised.  But what Amos 9 displays is there is no height, depth or distance the Lion of Zion will not go, no scenario He will not orchestrate, and no violence He will not take to demonstrate His love and eliminate the barrier between Himself and His people.  And not one will be lost.

Christ in the garden, trusting and moving forward despite the trial ahead - adds metric tons of value to Christ's humanity. Like us, Christ faces the catastrophe in trust and endures despite the trial. Christ didnt volunteer for the cross. The cross found him. And when presented with it, Jesus trusted and moved forward.

Captain Ahab is a man obsessed with the thing, the White Whale, that changed his life.  The White Whale is his nemesis, an uncontrollable element of life that has left him lame and threatened his reality.  Now Ahab is intent on destroying the thing that has broken him.  Ahab's life was that of a whaler, sea captain and successful merchant.  Now he is uprooted, physically changed, and the dominance he felt over his life’s direction is torn and changed by the will and force of an outside entity with a mind of its own.  The White Whale intends to destroy Ahab and has the power to do so. (Job 41:10)