bonhoeffer and disappointment

Today I have been watching dvds from Moore College's 2006 School of Theology. The topic was the consolation of theology. Great stuff. So far I've listened to lectures on Robert Banks speak about C.S. Lewis and pain, Peter Bolt speak about Kierkegaard and anxiety, and Brian Rosner talk about Bonhoeffer and disappointment.

I'm quite taken with this Bonhoeffer quote:

"Nothing can fill the gap when we are away from those we love, and it would be wrong to try and find anything. We must simply hold out and win through. That sounds very hard at first, but at the same time it is a great consolation, since leaving the gap unfilled preserves the bonds between us. It is nonsense to say that God fills the gap; He does not fill it, but keeps it empty so that our communion with another may be kept alive, even at the cost of pain" Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Thinking about the many emotional 'gaps' God leaves unfilled in our lives. Our want for partner, child, friend.. whatever, are real longings and God in his wisdom doesn't fill them. Perhaps his leaving them empty legitimises them as longings and we should thank him, in spite of the pain we feel.