Rob Witham

Suffering is never a fun topic to discuss. Let’s face it, there are more exciting things to talk about than suffering, grief, heartache and hardship. Unfortunately, suffering is something we all face at some time. The sad reality is that most of us are unprepared for suffering when we encounter it.

I do not have all of the answers to suffering - nor do I pretend to. There are some things we can glean from the Scriptures though that will help us to weather the inevitable storms.

Suffering Is A Universal Experience

Suffering, sickness and death are all a part of living in this world. We live in a fallen and sinful world that is under a curse. Genesis 3:14-19 records God’s conversation with Adam and Eve following their leap into sin. The serpent was cursed with eating dust, Eve (and her daughters) was cursed with pain and marital discord, and Adam (and his sons) was cursed with difficult toil and aggravation in their labors. All were cursed with death. Within a relatively short few years Adam and Eve also became the first parents to lose a child to death - a murder to be precise. They also became the first parents to have a child become a criminal and go on the run. Suffering followed sin quickly.

Suffering, hardship, sickness and death all stem from this unavoidable reality. We can not escape it. Sin has brought devastation and suffering to the human race and all of creation. Even creation groans in expectation of eventual deliverance.

Christians can expect to suffer because of their faith as well. Despite the prosperity teaching popular with some teachers, Christians have no guarantee of health and wealth. Quite the contrary, Jesus promised his followers persecution and difficulty. Many of the apostles and early disciples faced bitter persecution and even martyrdom. Christians throughout the ages have been persecuted and martyred. In many locations today the situation remains unchanged. Recent news reports confirm this. South Korean missionaries were recently kidnapped, and two were killed, by Taliban militants in Pakistan. Christians in Darfur continue to be martyred by Muslim militants as part of the ongoing genocide campaign in that country. Around the world Christians face persecution, imprisonment, abuse and even martyrdom for the sake of naming Jesus as Lord. Christians are far from immune to suffering. Christians are guaranteed to experience suffering.

Suffering Often Does Not Make Sense

Suffering often prompts us to ask the hard questions of life. When storms threaten us and our world suddenly seems shaken we begin to start asking serious questions. Many Christians have been conditioned to avoid these hard questions. Somehow the idea that questions were not spiritual became entrenched in Christianity.

Asking questions when we experience suffering is good, important and right. There are questions that are normal to ask, like “why?” Other questions are equally necessary for the Christian to ask, like “is this due to sin in my life?” or “what is God trying to accomplish in my life right now?” Suffering provides us with a raw soul to honestly ask and evaluate these questions - questions that we normally try to avoid. These questions provide an opportunity for real growth. Questions are good, important and right. We also have strong Biblical precedent for asking questions during life’s storms.

• Job - Job questioned why he experienced the things that he did. God did not reprove Job for asking why. Job was reproved for reaching a point where he demanded an answer of God. God then reminded Job who ran the universe.
• David - David frequently questioned suffering and hardship in the psalms that he wrote. David was known as a man after God’s heart. David’s psalms formed the basis of worship songs used in Judaism and Christianity for centuries - a practice that has sadly been all but lost.
• Jesus - Even Jesus struggled with questions during his suffering. Jesus struggled with God’s will in Gethsemane on the night of his arrest. One of his last statements on the cross before dying was to cry out to God, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Interestingly, Jesus was quoting a psalm of David when he directed this question to his Father (Psalm 22).

Sometimes, maybe even often times, suffering does not make sense. We often do not know why suffering and hardship afflict us. Even our Biblical heroes struggled with why they experienced certain suffering and hardships. There are some things that we will never understand. We simply do not know it all.

Suffering occurs for many reasons. Be very careful about assuming you know why someone is suffering

The Scripture does reveal some reasons why people experience suffering and hardship though. Considering these things can be helpful in evaluating our own life when we are in the midst of a storm.

Sin - Many times we suffer because of our own sin, error and foolishness. We reap what we sow according to the Apostle Paul (Galatians 6:7-8). Sowing seeds of sin will always result in a harvest of sin, suffering and death.

Discipline - Discipline is a subject too many in modern Christianity would prefer to skip over and ignore. However, the Scripture is clear: God disciplines those whom he loves (Hebrews 12:4-13). Another perspective on discipline is found in 2 Corinthians 12.2-10. Paul recounts how he received a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of satan, that was quite troublesome to the Apostle. Paul recounts that he prayed three times for God to remove this curse before receiving an answer. The answer, of course, was that the thorn in the flesh would remain to prevent Paul from becoming prideful because of his spiritual experiences. God’s grace was sufficient. This is a twist on discipline that we seldom hear discussed. Most talk of spiritual discipline is of a negative, punitive aspect of discipline. This is only half of the story. Discipline also has a positive aspect as seen with the Apostle Paul. God knew Paul would become prideful and brought discipline into his life to keep him on track. God loves us enough to wound us if that is what is necessary. Suffering and life storms may be experienced as part of God’s disciplining us.

Glory of God - Some suffering and hardship is experienced not because of sin or discipline but simply to give God glory. Consider the story of Job (Job 1:6-12). Job’s suffering had little to do with Job. Job’s suffering was so that God could be glorified in front of the angels - both fallen and unfallen. Consider also Jesus’ encounter with a man born blind (John 9:1-7). Jesus’ disciples wanted to know who had sinned that the man should have been born blind. This is a perception that was common at the time of Job, still common at the time of Jesus, and still common today. Jesus set the record straight for his disciples and for all who followed. No one sinned that the man was born blind. The man was born blind so that Jesus could heal him and God would be glorified! Consider again Paul’s thorn in the flesh. God told Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” God is glorified when we are at the end of ourselves for it is at this point that we recognize and confess our dependence on him. Some suffering and hardship is experienced for the glorification of God.

Unknown / Not Revealed - We don’t always know why suffering and tragedy occurs. We don’t always get an answer to our questions. Consider Jesus’ conversation recorded in Luke 13:1-5. Apparently much speculation was made about the collapse of the Tower of Siloam. Many thought that the collapse was indicative of God’s judgment on those who died that day. Jesus did not answer the question in the way that was expected. Jesus turned the question around on his hearers and reminded them of their own need to repent lest they faced the same judgment as those who had died. Hasty opinions about the suffering of others may cause God to be angry with us. Job’s friends discovered this the hard way. God strongly rebuked them for their criticism of Job. God told Job’s friends that they had not spoken rightly of him and demanded that they make an offering for their sin in speaking of him wrongly.

One of the ironies of the modern church is that we are quick to ignore what we should judge and quick to judge what we should ignore. Be very careful about judging why someone is experiencing suffering and storms in their life.

Suffering Is Best Viewed From Another Perspective

Viewed from the other side our suffering may look very different. Job questioned his suffering because he did not see what God saw. Jesus’ disciples questioned the suffering of the man born blind because they did not know what God knew. When we question our suffering we need to remember that we do not know and see what God knows and sees.

God has not forgotten or abandoned us when we are in the midst of a storm. God did not forget Job but was actively involved in his protection and his restoration. God did not forget about the man born blind whom Jesus healed. This man was a participant in God’s glorification. God did not forget about Paul but protected him from his own pride.

Our own short-sighted lack of perspective often complicates our suffering. Suffering is never easy. Storms are never fun to go through. But keeping our perspective right can make a big difference in how well we weather the storm.

• According to Hebrews, God is much more interested in our holiness than in our comfort
• According to 2 Corinthians, God may allow suffering in our lives to protect us from ourselves
• According to Job, we are part of a much larger story that God is unfolding

A Positive Perspective On Suffering

Unfortunately, suffering is a part of our life. Hardship and grief are unavoidable and will affect each of us. We can limit, but not eliminate, the suffering we experience by believing, trusting and following God.

When we do experience suffering and hardship it is important to remember:

• Suffering often does not make sense when we are in the midst of it - questions are normal, even if we do not receive an answer
• Suffering is best viewed from a heavenly perspective rather than from an earthly perspective -we are part of a much larger story

Ultimately the choice of how we respond to suffering is ours. We can lose heart and abandon faith or we can take heart and cling to faith. “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11.1).

Faith does not become faith until we believe even when we can no longer see. Faith becomes faith when we are in the midst of the storm. Until then it is just a belief system.

Praising God In The Midst Of The Storm

Storms will come. Trials will assail us. But in the midst of it all we still can choose to praise God.

Casting Crowns has a great song about this. The song is titled Praise You In This Storm. Mark Hall shares this comment as part of his introduction to the song.

“Sometimes God calms our storms. Sometimes He chooses to ride them with us.”

Praise You In This Storm begins with these words:

I was sure by now, that you would have reached down
And wiped our tears away, stepped in and saved the day
But once again I say amen, and it’s still raining
And as the thunder rolls, I barely hear you whisper
Through the rain, I’m with you
And as your mercy falls, I raise my hands and praise
The God who gives and takes away

I will praise you in this storm, and I will lift my hands
For you are who you are, no matter where I am
And every tear I cry, you hold in your hand
You never left my side, and though my heart is torn
I will praise you in this storm.

Casting Crowns - Praise You In This Storm

This is one of the most powerful songs I have heard in some time. I love the message. Mark is right - sometimes God chooses to calm our storms and sometimes he chooses to ride our storms with us.

God does not promise us a rose garden; rather, God promises suffering and hard times. God does promise us:

• his presence
• his protection
• his grace
• his peace

My encouragement is to choose faith. Choose now to cling to faith when the storms come into your life. Choose faith and let God ride your storms with you. He will never leave you or forsake you - that is a promise.