Nobody Knows The Trouble I’ve Seen?

“Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen” is an African-American spiritual song. It originated sometime during the period of slavery here in the U.S., but it wasn’t published until 1867. The traditional lyrics are:

Nobody knows the trouble I’ve been through

Nobody knows my sorrow

Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen…

Sometimes I’m up, sometimes I’m down

Oh, yes, Lord

Sometimes I’m almost to the ground

Oh, yes, Lord

Although you see me going ‘long so

I have my troubles here below.

Most of us are familiar with the newer version, “Nobody knows the trouble I see, nobody knows but Jesus.”  That’s not true!  With 7.7 billion people populating this world there are many others besides Jesus who DO KNOW “the trouble I’ve been through” and the trouble you’ve been through, who DO KNOW my sorrow and your sorrow.  They know because they are going through those troubles too.

On July 17, 2019, my wife, Cherie (Cher), was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.  It was a shock. We had no idea.  We have now joined the company of thousands of others, WHO DO KNOW, and are wrestling with this disease, going through the trauma of chemotherapy and all that such treatment entails.  And now you know—and we can no longer say,“Nobody knows, but Jesus.” Nor could we say, “No One Knows, but Jesus” even before telling you. The American Cancer Society estimated that there would be 22,000-plus new cases of ovarian cancer diagnosed in the U.S. this year.  That means over 22,000 women know the trouble we are experiencing—not just Jesus!

There is a saying, “Minor surgery is when it is happening to you, and Major surgery is when it is happening to me.”  I understand this attitude, but I want to resist it—because I know that “Jesus loves the little children, all the children in the world, Red, brown, yellow, Black and white.  They are precious in His sight.  Jesus loves the little children of the world.” And all those little children have their troubles too.  None of those troubles are minor—they are all major!

“You are not alone,” a friend assured me a few days ago.  It is true.  We are not alone in our troubles, not only because Jesus knows, but because everybody knows—all 7.7 billion people know.  No one is immune to trouble, disease, or sorrow.  We live in the company of the perplexed and the troubled.  We are not alone.