A profound question, An answer attempted

If we had to come up with a definition, how would we define suffering? Is it anything that doesn't go right? Is it anything that exemplifies the fallen condition of this world? Is it any hardship with spiritual ramifications? Is it all or none of these things?

I will not pretend to know the answer to the above question, but given my own limited experience with suffering as well as the Bible, I hope to shed some light and perhaps articulate a bit of sufferings definition.
1. Suffering is real and will occur in our lifetime:
"For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too". 2 Corinthians 1:5
"This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are also suffering." 2 Thes. 1:5
There are movements today that proclaim you will live an easy, painless life if you follow Christ…but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Once you accept Christ, you are counted worthy (because of Him), to have His joy, Spirit, peace, love, forgiveness and salvation-are you not also to share in His sufferings? Also, we immediately become a target for the enemy when we become a Child of God. So, it is clear that suffering is real in the life of Christian.

2. Suffering brings glory to God if we cling to Him when in it:
“More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” Romans 5
“that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death” Philippians
“But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” 1 Peter 4:13
Suffering draws us nearer to Christ, builds Him up in us, reveals an eternal view, and thus, brings glory to Him. Oswald Chambers writes, “ If through a broken heart God can bring His purposes to pass in the world, then thank Him for breaking your heart.” Do we have the absolute aim to have His purposes carried out on this earth or do we put our own solace first?

3. Suffering takes many shapes and forms:
“Count is joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness…” James 1:2
“…the soul of the wounded cries for help; yet God charges no one with wrong.” Job 24…Whatever that wound may be-however trivial it may appear…we are to call to Him for help.

Furthermore, in 2 Corinthians 6, Paul elaborates on some examples of suffering: “in afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger…”

4. The definition: Suffering is that which strips us of hope, peace, and comfort on all levels. Don’t get me wrong, we can experience all of those in abundance, but only through the strength of Christ. We may lose comfort physically, we may lose hope spiritually and we may lose peace emotionally, but all is a stripping bare until we are left with nothing to cling to by Christ. The cause may be the Lord allowing the enemy to attack, it may be that we are simply living in a fallen world, or it may be a direct result of our own sin. Suffering is a broad term today, and has varying degrees of severity, but it is not a word to be used lightly, for it is used in comparison to Christ sufferings on the cross. We catch only a glimpse of the heavy affliction Christ faced on this earth, and we must remember that always.

Suffering is a time for pruning. It is in this position of weakness that forces us to seek the strength of Another.
As Elisabeth Elliot says, “The word suffering is much too grand to apply to most of our troubles, but if we don’t learn to refer the little things to God, how shall we learn to refer the big ones? A definition which covers all sorts of trouble, great or small is this: having what you don’t want or wanting what you don’t have. “ Brilliant. We must look into the eye of the storm and then up in the heavens and say, “Lord, show me what You have for me in this.” It is an occasion to be molded by the Potter.

Another thing Elliot says is that “God’s ultimate purpose in all suffering is joy.” I pose another question to His beloved children that may read this, how are we to experience joy in suffering?

Living in the promise that He is El Shaddai (the God who is enough),
Kate

May I remind myself in these times that there is no circumstance so hopeless, no horizon so black that God cannot there find His glory.

A bold prayer

It seems like life is a road of one trial after another. But do I view that right? Am I not supposed to share in Christ’s sufferings as I share in His joy, peace and love? Or, as Job put it, can we take the good from the Lord and not the bad? (Can I take the good, the bad and the ugly? J )
I am learning to lean on Him. I am learning to turn to Him first, to use His guidance as the filter from which I perceive all things. I am learning to stand on truth rather than my seemingly all-controlling feelings. None of this is easy; it takes discipline, a surrendering of my self and truly understanding that most things are a choice, not a mere feeling or chance.
I am tired of underestimating the power of the Spirit in me, and failing to grasp that the gospel is more than salvation for eternal life. It is salvation from myself (my will, my flesh, my crooked thoughts and wayward spirit). The abundant life is for NOW through Christ. He died on that cross to change me, to FREE me from myself, to live in the knowledge and truth that I am new. All else is…well, lies. A good friend of mine was sharing that the Greek meaning of “believe” in the New Testament is a continuous action tense. This means that it is not merely about saying I believe and praying the prayer once, but day in and day out putting that belief into action. Billy Graham once said, “The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians, who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle. THAT is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.” This isn’t just doing things we shouldn’t, but NOT doing things we should. Or, in technical terms, the sins we commit are not merely sins of commission, but also of omission. It’s not sharing the gospel when the Spirit prompts me to or not encouraging a good friend because my pride is rearing its ugly head.
Our walk is not so greatly enriched by comfort or prosperity as it is by adversity and hardship. For in adversity, we find the true measure of our faith, our surrender and our willingness to go “through the wilderness” with God. Let us not dress Christianity like the culture. It is different; Christ lived differently. Let us not justify our drinking habits; our desire to “not miss out on fun”, by saying it is ministry. When was the last time you shared the gospel downtown? We are to be a lily among thorns. We are to be the salt among the earth and the light in the darkness. Are we blending in? Yes, Jesus was with sinners, but He never forgot WHY He was there and always spoke love and truth simultaneously.

This entry seems to be jumping all over, but I think there is a connection. Through adversity I have been refined in the fire and seen that which had to be removed. It was quite a bit of the culture, of pride, of justification on my part, of blending in; more than I would like to admit. We usually don’t see our sin for what it worth until we shed the skin of self and walk in the Spirit of Christ. Being human, I refused to shed that skin until the harsh winds of adversity removed it.

So let us pray a bold prayer, let us ask that we would be broken, tested and tried so that we may come out less like ourselves and more like Christ in the end. Let us not settle for complacency. He wants more of us. Shouldn’t we?
His, Kate