Suffering

i was talking with a friend just yesterday about suffering. as i was asking about her specific struggle, it got me thinking about the role God plays in our suffering. why would a God of love appoint us to suffer, ever? the struggles, the illnesses, the loss of a loved one or job, the trying times in our lives... if God is a God of love and compassion then why is there suffering for his people?

to that, i answered myself this... God never asked us to do anything we can do; He asked us to live a life we can never live, to do a work we can never do. it is by His grace that we are living and doing it. it is by His Spirit that we are living it out. and through it all, there will be struggling and persecution. it says so in the Word. (2 timothy 3:12)

when the apostle paul was locked up in a roman jail cell, he was suffering. it was then when he wrote about suffering and what God intends it to look like through the story of Epaphroditus (who risked his life to share the love that the philippians had for him). 

"now i rejoice in what was suffered for you, and i fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church. i have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in it's fullness-" colossians 1:24-26

paul is filling up the afflictions of Jesus. meaning; what's missing from those afflictions is the presentation of our suffering savior. since we couldn't see Jesus' death, He sends ambassadors of his suffering to suffer in our midst. He calls you to suffer for him to bring his love and his afflictions to bear on you. Christ could no longer make the personal presentation to all the nations... he's in Heaven. we, however, are called the body of Christ. thus, God intends for the afflictions of Christ to be presented to the world through the afflictions of His people. 

paul is like epaphraditus. he's taking the love offering of the sufferings of Christ and offering to those who didn't have a personal relationship with Jesus. his sufferings are an extension to others so they might not only hear about how Christ suffered for them, but see in him, His body and His sufferings for them. 

our suffering advances the gospel. i'm perfectly okay with that. if i am to suffer for the sake of the spreading of the gospel then lay it on me. and here's the kicker. i will pray that i rejoice in it too! we can rejoice because Jesus will carry us through it. like that cheesy poem, the "footprints" one. "...when you saw only one set of footprints in the sand, it was then that i carried you". haha but this is true. life is going to be a roller coaster of trials and tribulations and times of suffering. it should also be about continuous praise and glory given to our Father through it all. therefore, "...because the Lord's steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise Him." psalm 63:3

finally; through your suffering, are you making it known that the hope of Christ lives in you? it is said, "...the God of all peace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast." 1 peter 5:10

is this length good mr. kelly? ;)