Purpose in Suffering: Part I
“There was only one perfect man who ever lived. Only one man who was obedient when he definitely deserved an easy out. Jesus knows what it feels like to be in an impossible situation, Molly. The man sweat drops of blood, he was so distressed by the thought of going to the cross. He pleaded with the father to take the cup from him! He knows, Molly. And I think he sympathizes with what you’ve gone through.”
I tossed out the cold remains of my coffee. “I want to believe that,” I whispered. “But honestly the hardest part of this whole ordeal has been wondering why God would allow any of this to happen in the first place. I was a good girl, Delilah,” I insisted. “Grew up in the church, accepted Christ at a young age, did my best to make him happy. I recognize that I made some mistakes—especially in my relationship with Jason—but I don’t think I deserved all this,” I spat.
Another Ending – Sara Whitley
Suffering. It can make us question everything, bring us to our knees as doubts swallow up our faith. One of the most common responses to suffering is to ask God why.
If you’re so good, God, why would you allow this to happen?
We go through great lengths to avoid suffering, and our hearts ache watching someone we love walk through it. As a mother, I certainly don’t want my children to suffer! But when I stop and consider what God could be doing for my child through suffering, my heart begins to change. There is purpose behind our pain; God uses suffering to draw us closer to him, to refine us, and to allow us to empathize with others—just to name a few!
God has certainly used difficult seasons to draw me closer to him. Shortly after my son Oliver was born in January 2017, I found out that I wouldn’t be able to return to the job I had left behind for maternity leave. What was my response to this twist in my plan? Panic. And anger. Having a baby was enough of a major life change, without having to scramble to find a new job in the few short weeks I had left in my maternity leave! But God showed his love, mercy, and grace toward me in a way that increased my love for him. He led me to a new job in just the right time, a job with better hours that allowed me to also pursue my master’s degree.
In his article, “Why Do We Suffer So Much?” Jared Mulvihill says that “God has a way of delighting the soul when all else is stripped away and the mountaintop sunshine turns into the shadow of the valley of death. It is the moments of deepest need and desperation in which God provides himself as healing balm. Affliction is the dark backdrop from which the saints most clearly see and savor the gleaming glory of God which satisfies the heart and warms the soul.” How true this was for me—it is often through the hard times that I am more clearly able to see God’s goodness and his provision in my life. Hardships provide an excellent opportunity to preach the Gospel to yourself—to remind yourself of all the ways God has remained faithful to a very unfaithful people, how He never gave up on his covenant promise when His people did time after time.
I’m sure you have your own story of suffering. My main character Molly in Another Ending certainly does—you will find I do not take it easy on this girl! But I did so to remind my readers that even in the midst of great pain, God is still good. He is the only one who can fill our deepest needs, He is the only source of healing for our hurting hearts. Is suffering painful? Absolutely. But it is not pointless, friends. God can and does use it for our good and for His glory.
Perhaps you, like Molly, struggle with the idea of “bad things happening to good people.” Maybe you are trying to dull your pain with all the wrong things, like Molly does as well. And if this is the case, can you see God’s mercy in suffering? It pains him to see his children chasing after things that will never satisfy, never save. Ultimate healing—salvation—is found in him alone. Jesus says in John 14:6 that “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” We won’t find it anywhere else, friends. And if suffering is what it takes to bring us to our knees and draw us to a merciful and gracious God, then should we not praise him through our storms?
Now, doing so does not mean we are to remain ever cheerful and smiling through our pain. Suffering hurts. And that’s okay. Jesus himself was no stranger to suffering—Isaiah 53: 4-5 says that “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” He knew the road he traveled along led to the cross and that through his death, God’s wrath against sin would be fully satisfied. God would raise him victorious. And yet, even knowing this, the thought of the cross—of being separated from his Father as the sin of the whole world was poured out into his heart—was excruciating to Jesus. Luke 22:41-44 gives us a glimpse into what Jesus endured in the hours leading up this his betrayal and arrest—”And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, ‘Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.’ And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”
I don’t know about you, but I take comfort knowing that Jesus understands suffering. That he knows what it feels like to walk along a difficult road. That in his fully human (yet still fully God) form, he experienced every human emotion, sorrow included. “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:14-16).
If you are walking along a road of suffering today, friend, take heart. You can trust that the Lord will use this for your good and for His glory—”Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good” (1 Peter 4:19). And while painful, we can be thankful for the scars we accumulate along these difficult roads. They tell a powerful story of a loving God.
