Trials and Suffering, Oh my!

 Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved. (Helen Keller)

We might desire all of life to be ease and quiet, but then we are living with unreasonable expectations. Jesus said, "I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) We will have many trials - not just a few. We may not face all of them with strength, but we can learn strength in the midst of them. It is important to remember there is no temptation 'unique' to any man - we all have faced a similar temptation at one time or another. What we might find 'unique' is that we all learn different things from trials that are quite similar. Why? God is developing some strength within us that will not only benefit ourselves, but will be a means of helping another develop strength, too.

Character is something developed when the mind learns to be at peace and the heart learns to be at rest. We don't learn this in the absence of trials - we learn it in the midst of them. Our character is a way of describing those unique qualities that set us apart from another, but it is also important to note that Jesus wanted us to take on his character. We are to develop in a loving servant's heart - taking the truth he gives to each of us and using what we have learned to influence this world and to encourage one another as we face life's challenges. Have all the lessons I have learned in this lifetime always come from good, God-fearing believers? Not hardly! Some of the best lessons I have learned have been from those who have failed miserably - their failure leaving a life-long influence in my life making me determined not to follow in their footsteps. 

We all want to be defined as men or women of 'good character', but we don't always make the choices that exhibit the best of moral or ethical standards, do we? Sometimes we just get a little too selfish or stubborn and go our own way. When we do, our 'character' may become a little 'tarnished', but take heart - Jesus stands at the ready to help bring beauty where only ashes remain. As others see how God can take even our worst failures and turn them into lessons that develop good character in us, they will be encouraged. Why? They might just come to the conclusion that God can do something similar in their lives, helping them put behind the things that didn't produce the best of character and move toward the things that will. Just sayin!

The temperature is just right

I don't think of all the misery but of the beauty that still remains. (Anne Frank)

After you have suffered a little while, our God, who is full of kindness through Christ, will give you his eternal glory. He personally will come and pick you up, and set you firmly in place, and make you stronger than ever. (I Peter 5:10)

"Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God." (Corrie ten Boom) For those who are not familiar with Corrie, let me give you just a little background. She came from a family of Dutch watchmakers during the time of Hitler's regime. She and her family did much to protect the Jews fleeing the concentration camps and the horror that awaited them - hiding many in their attic space and providing for their daily needs. The motto of their household: "In this household, God's people are always welcome." She endured hardship upon hardship, including her arrest and detention in a political concentration camp. Yet, in all she endured, one theme comes through repeatedly in her writings and in her personal testimony. 

I had the privilege of sitting with her one night in a small group and seeing her faith. I didn't just 'read about' or 'hear about' her faith - I observed it living and breathing before me. One of the most profound things she said has stuck with me over the years and given me much insight into my own struggles. She told us, "Hold everything in your hands lightly, otherwise it hurts when God pries your fingers open." We hold on so tightly to things we should not be so attached to, especially bitterness - the root of it being unwilling to let go of a wrong another has done to us. She always reminded others that the human 'will' may not want to forgive, but the 'will' is driven by the heart. The 'temperature' of the heart can be changed by the presence of God in your heart.

Herein is the hope we need to latch onto - God may allow suffering for a while - but he will not abandon us in it. The 'temperature' of our heart may grow colder and colder as the suffering becomes longer and longer but know this - the embers of his grace and love can rekindle that flame of faith. How? The answer lies in something else Corrie said, "If you look at the world, you'll be distressed. If you look within, you'll be depressed. If you look at God, you'll be at rest." The 'rest' comes when the temperature of our heart begins to change, and the attitude of our spirit begins to reflect his grace and love once again. We cannot always avoid suffering - even when we are doing the right things. When it comes, WHO we face it with will determine the 'temperature' of our hearts. When that is Jesus, the temperature will be 'just right'. Just sayin!

Okay, enough of this already!

If I had not found joy in your teachings, my suffering would have destroyed me. I will never forget your commands, because through them you gave me new life. (Psalm 119:92-93 ERV)

We probably can all look back at points in our lives when we thought whatever it was we were going through just about "destroyed" us. Our joy was gone, energies depleted, and wherewithal to make any new decisions totally evaded us. In short, we were "suffering" - either by our own doing, or that of another, and it just about "undid" us. Our rescue in those times is often found in the simplest of things, but often the most overlooked when we find ourselves in the midst of tremendous suffering - his Word. It is by his Word all things were created - it is by his Word that all things are sustained - it is also by his Word all things are renewed and made whole again!

David sums it all up for us by reminding us that everything has its limits - even those things that seem to be unending and grossly overpowering in our lives (vs. 96). The one thing that is limitless is the power of his commands - his Word. We can count on this - take it to the bank, so to speak. His Word and the unfathomable power that "backs" that Word don't have any limits - they are all-powerful, all-knowing, always present. While we may not think our present suffering has any limit or end, God knows when and where that will be - and he knows exactly how it will come to pass. Isn't it silly for us to go through our suffering without looking into the one place where we will find such wisdom?

Just a few thoughts for us to take with us today:

- The places of our pain make perfect breeding ground for his Word to nest. What is the purpose of a nest? Isn't it to allow for "multiplication" and "renewal"? The bird makes a nest not out of habit, or because they needed something to occupy their time. The bird makes the nest in anticipation of what will one day come from that nest!

- That which becomes our constant companion has the greatest influence on us in times where doubt, fear, hopelessness, and anxiety want to invade our minds and hearts. If this be his Word, we will soon find there is no room for doubt - for his Word settles our minds and gives security to our heart (emotions). If this be his Word, we will also find fear and anxiety begin to diminish - for his Word brings peace beyond measure. If this be his Word, there will always be a reminder of the tremendous hope we have when we finally realize he is in control and how deeply he cares for those he loves. Just sayin!