How to deal with suffering

The Bible makes a wonderful promise to us: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. . . Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered. No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8: 28, 35-39).

I want to make a few observations about suffering. First, every one of us has suffered, is suffering, or will suffer (8:18-38). I probably don’t have to tell you this. You might even fit all three categories. The suffering spreads to everyone, including some of the greatest Christians of our time. Consider an aging Billy Graham. His battle with Parkinson’s disease has become more pronounced and noticeable. In a recent interview he spoke of his suffering: “I think God sent it to me at this age to show me I am totally dependent on him.”                        

 Consider Amy Carmichael, who was a missionary to South India. Had she never experienced suffering, her name would probably not be well known today. She spent 56 years on the mission field and never returned home to England. An accident damaged her leg and left her bedridden for the last 20 years of her life. But it was during these 20 years of suffering, in bed, that she wrote most of her 40 books.  God used her experience of suffering to bring encouragement to millions of people. She was thinking of Romans 8:28, she said, when she wrote these words: “A wise master never wastes his servant’s time.”  No matter what set of circumstances we receive, God will not waste an experience if we will remain obedient to Him.

Second, suffering has the potential to draw us closer to God (8:38-39, 17). According to the Bible, no matter how great the suffering, none of it will ever separate us from the love of God (vs. 38-39). In fact, not only will suffering not separate us from the love of God, it can, if we let it, actually draw us closer to the love of God. Paul writes, “If we share in his sufferings, we may also share in His glory.” (8:17) Even if Paul was writing of a future glory, we at least get a glimpse, once in a while, of how people who wanted to know more of God did so … only by suffering. Suffering can draw us closer to God.  Through the suffering, we can become like Jesus when we face death. So how did Jesus die? Confident in the power of the Father. Confident in the promises of the Father. Confident in his mission of ministry, of serving others for the Glory of God. But the point is this: Suffering can draw you closer to God. It has the potential to do this great work, but it’s not a given. Your attitude in the midst of suffering, your ability to look for God when you’re at your personal point of crisis, your personal dead end, that will determine whether or not you learn through the suffering that God has provided.

The Apostle Paul, who suffered tremendously during his years of ministry, said it this way: Our present sufferings aren’t worthy for comparing with the glory that awaits us. (Romans 8:14). He goes on, in another letter to encourage us: “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Cor. 4:16-18). Hebrews 12:2-3 challenges us to “fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

Pastor Samuel can be reached at sskrouse@succeed.net or (530) 696-0563