Micah's Musings: Suffering

"Why me, God?" "Why have you allowed me to go through this?"These are questions that at one time or another, many of us asked. The fact is that suffering is a large part of the Christian faith, but it is rarely addressed in the church. Or, at least dealing with it is not often addressed-- we skim the surface of suffering, saying that it happens, and acknowledging that Jesus is there in the midst of it, but very rarely have I heard anything taught about how to suffer.Talking about suffering is uncomfortable. It shatters the rosey image of the perfect American dream as part of the Christian life, and it forces us to face the cost of knowing Christ. We are never guaranteed that Christianity will be easy-- on the contrary, we are guaranteed the opposite.We often hear John 16:33 quoted in regards to suffering: “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.” However, I find that examining the verses around it help give context and more insight into what Jesus is saying. In the verses beforehand, Jesus is telling his disciples about how he will leave them (to go to the cross), but when he returns, all their grief will be turned into great joy (for the world will be redeemed because of his suffering). In the verses following (going into chapter 17), Jesus addresses the father, asking him to be glorified through his actions (on the cross) so that he may be reunited with him in heaven. In that moment, Jesus prepares the disciples' hearts to the fact that there will be suffering, that he will go away, and that when he returns, he will have completed the work that God sent him to do. Even in his anticipation of all he would have to endure, Jesus prepares them to understand that sometimes, suffering is necessary in order to glorify God, fulfill the purpose he has called us to, and bring us closer to him.

By examining the way that he prepares to suffer the cross, we are also given great wisdom about how to endure hardships. In Luke 22:39-46, we see Jesus praying on the Mount of Olives in anticipation of what will come. Although we know that Jesus was fully God and fully human, I think we often forget the humanity side of him. He experienced human emotions in the same way that we do, and we see that in his prayer to the father: "Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine (42)."Sometimes, we think that as Christians, we have to face suffering with a sunny smile and an eager heart. While it's true that we have to be willing to walk through what he has called us to, we can see through Jesus' example that the Lord created us to be emotional beings, and that we are allowed to experience the swell of emotions attached with hardships. We need not put on a front, pretending that everything is fine. Rather, we ought to seek him ever closer, surrendering to his will. Here are the practical actions steps that I take away from Luke 22 about how to suffer:

1. First, we ought to withdraw, as Jesus does, to be with the father and pray. When Jesus prays, he surrenders to the father's will (42), and the Lord sends him an angel from heaven to strengthen him (43).
2. Second, it's okay to experience the emotions associated with suffering. As he prays in agony, Jesus weeps tears of blood and anguish.
3. Third, we are called to return to the community of believers we've surrounded ourselves with (as Jesus does with the disciples). Then, we are able to experience the body of Christ in action as others pray for, walk with, and support us through our suffering. We were never called to suffer alone-- rather, we are upheld by our savior and his church through hardships.
4. Fourth, we must press on to endure the suffering. The entire process is hard, full of emotions, and exhausting, but this is the hardest step. This is the step where we ask the Lord again to remove the cup of suffering from our lips, and again, where we surrender to his will, and then, where we faithfully endure the hardship.
5. Fifth (and finally), we get to experience Jesus on a deeper level when we are at our lowest point. We get to see him show up and move in mighty ways in hard circumstances where man alone cannot make things right. In Philippians 3:10-11, we see (one of) Paul's response(s) to suffering: "I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that I raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience resurrection from the dead!" In James 1:2-4, we are encouraged to consider our trials as joy, because they lead to spiritual maturity (and closer knowledge of Jesus). Suffering does come with a reward: knowing Jesus in a more intimate way, getting to see him work in impossible circumstances, and allowing our testimonies to encourage other believers.

I will not pretend that I know what it is to experience great suffering, and I know that even as I write, many believers are enduring circumstances I cannot comprehend-- their magnitude is great, and I pray that the Lord will move mightily to show himself in the places where it seems no good may ever come again. I know only what I see in the character and actions of Jesus, and in the hardships that I have walked through, I find that following his example and seeking him ever earnestly is the way to make it through. Psalm 27 is one that I have prayed (and wept) over many times when my situation seems hopeless, and I pray it gives encouragement to you as well.I pray, reader, that in whatever trials you may be facing, that you will find solace in the person of Jesus Christ; that you will seek his face more closely; that you will be surrounded by a strong community of believers to support you; and that ultimately, you will be drawn closer to the heart of Jesus through it all, for he is the reward of our suffering.