We want to be done with this pain! We want to be done with the not knowing! We want to be done! But it is the going “through the pain” that makes us the better person, better friend, better spouse, better boss, better employee. It makes us a better child of God! What would Jesus do?
Now my soul is deeply troubled. Shall I pray, “Father, save me from what lies ahead”? But that is the very reason why I came! Father, bring glory and honor to your name.
John 12:27–28
Our attitude toward sorrow and difficulty should not be to ask that they be prevented, but to ask that God protect us so we may remain what He created us to be, in spite of all our fires of sorrow. Our Lord received Himself, accepting His position and realizing His purpose, in the midst of the fire of sorrow. He was saved not from the hour, but out of the hour.
If we are honest with ourselves, the times of our greatest growth as individuals have probably come during our greatest trials, our greatest sorrows. As the saying goes, “If it does not kill you, it will make you stronger!” So true.
We say that there ought to be no sorrow, but there is sorrow, and we have to accept and receive ourselves in its fires. If we try to evade sorrow, refusing to deal with it, we are foolish. Sorrow is one of the biggest facts of life, and there is no use in saying it should not be. Sin, sorrow, and suffering are real, and it is not for us to say that God has made a mistake in allowing them.
Sorrow removes a great deal of a person’s shallowness, but it does not always make that person better. Suffering either gives me to myself or it destroys me. You cannot find or receive yourself through success, because you lose your head over pride. And you cannot receive yourself through the monotony of your daily life, because you give in to complaining. The only way to find yourself is in the fires of sorrow.
Why it should be this way is immaterial. The fact is that it is true in the scriptures and in human experience. You can always recognize who has been through the fires of sorrow and received himself, and you know that you can go to him in your moment of trouble and find that he has plenty of time for you. If you will receive yourself in the fires of sorrow, God will make you nourishment for other people.
Today, we pray, Lord: don’t take this hour from us, but speed us through this hour of trials. Allow us to learn and grow during this time so that we can be used by You for Your Glory. We pray that all of us receiving this message have the courage to go through the pain—knowing You are right beside us, not allowing us to stumble. We thank you, Lord, for giving us this wisdom.
Have a blessed day.
