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The anomaly of suffering. Anomaly: an inconsistency, irregularity, strange condition, abnormality. It is a strange condition to say that suffering helps us respond to the gospel; but sometimes people you would never expect to respond to the good news of Jesus Christ do so when they encounter suffering. It’s amazing what people will do when they are desperate.
A parishioner in my very first pastorate proved this point. He was a good man, but hardened to the Gospel. Then he got what his doctor called “an angry cancer.” He fought it for 11 years, eventually turned to Christ and served God faithfully. His suffering had a wonderful result! The day he died (a Sunday morning, in Ohio) I was getting ready to go to our church in Michigan. My wife answered the phone and heard that this dear man suddenly said to his wife, “We’ve got to pray for Pastor Curt . . .” got out of bed, knelt and prayed for me. A few hours later he was with the Lord!!! Suffering brings many amazing things!
People may respond to the Gospel because of their own suffering, or that of someone else. When suffering and hardship result in someone trusting Christ as Savior, then suffering has accomplished its intended purposed. SO that raises the question, is suffering good news? Suffering is only good news when its final result is growth, faith, new–found joy, peace and godly purpose. And it can result in those qualities if we’re willing to embrace the redemption that only Christ can, and often does give us, through our suffering and hardships
Suffering reminds us that WE are not in Control
Suffering is the great equalizer. Peter admitted in Acts 10:34, “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism.”
Suffering and hardship touch the wealthiest and the poorest. Good people and bad all experience suffering. Sickness attacks the weak; but also, strong, vigorous people. You could never have enough money, enough exercise or enough good deeds to guarantee that you would never suffer. It’s out of your control. Even those who pride themselves on always being in control find themselves on the same level playing field as everyone else.
A class of people ‘in control.’ Some people devote their entire lives to controlling everything in their lives, including other people; they are a ‘class’ of people ‘in control.’ Control freaks include CEOs and lowly, frustrated people looking for someone or something to control. People who are used to controlling the fates of thousands of other people find they cannot control their own suffering and hardship. God sometimes uses pain and suffering to show people that they are not in control, a lesson we need to learn before we will turn to God for His kind and benevolent control in our lives.
Suffering does not mean that God will force us to let Him control our lives—far from it. But God sometimes uses suffering and hardship to remind us that there is very little in life that we can truly control. Thus, we are invited to turn over control of our lives to Him
In his book Silent Issues in the Church, Carl Lundquist wrote: “ . . .Christian [character] is hidden deep inside us. It is unseen, like the soup carried in a bowl high over a waiter’s head. No one knows what’s inside—unless the waiter is bumped, and he trips!
In a similar way, people don’t know what’s inside us until we’ve been bumped or we trip—until we go through hardships. Then, if Christ is living inside us, what spills out is the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self–control!
The next time you go through something difficult, if you can’t tell God thank you, at least remember that even in pain and suffering, HE IS STILL GOD!