Suffering

Today my closest roommate Josh came running with me this morning and is going to go to the gym and work out with me tomorrow morning, and that is very encouraging. It is nice spending more time with him and having someone going with me is always better. Tonight I learned about suffering, I never really understood why their is suffering and why we go through it. It always seemed to make much more sense in a world with no or as little as possible suffering as possible. In Genesis 3 man sinned and opened up the world to suffering, before there was none. This opened up the world to Satan. Now it is just part of living in a fallen world.The other reason for suffering is so that God can show his glory, John 9:1-3. I always think if I am suffering that i maybe did something wrong, or something like that, God doesn't make us suffer for that reason. He may discipline us though. This was tough for me to swallow, but it is true: God allows ALL suffering to happen, Satan does nothing without God's permission, without a villain their is no hero. This was hard for me to think, that God really allows EVERYTHING to happen, but Romans 8:28 backs it up. I believe the scriptures ans I believe God is always sovereign, we have to believe that. Everyone suffers, especially Christians, John 15. Everyone suffers, and then we suffer some more.God uses suffering for many reasons, mainly for His glory. He uses it to bring people to Him. I know I will try to do things on my own till the last possible minute and then I turn to God. We also see things through suffering that we wouldn't normally see. It truly shows us our need for Christ, 2nd Corinthians 1:8-10 and 1st Corinthians 12. It also makes us more like Christ, Romans 5:4-5. It is a rough process and we must say that we can't do this on our own, I need to depend on God. CS Lewis says that pain is God's megaphone. Think of steel, it needs to be taken to the fire to be molded AND to get the impurities out of it, so that it can be made new and be better. We are God's steel, he will put us in the fire, but he does it through love. He knows that we can handle all things through Him. He will not put you through anything you can't handle, especially if you lean on Him. Suffering is a necessity and we have to engage in some suffering. We have to choose some suffering, Philippians 1:29 and 3:10-11. Suffering is choosing the hard road and it is not sweet.One of the hardest things for me to take in is that God doesn't owe me an explanation for why He puts me through suffering. He's still God and still good. He knows best. We suffer for Christ through obedience, sacrifice and loving people. If you are not suffering already then you probably really aren't living for Christ. I learned that I must suffer in the little things and trust God. Because when the big things come I will be ready to suffer and lean on Him. If it is not important to me I won't suffer, I need to make the little things important. So why suffer? WE are rewarded for it, Luke 6:22-23. Suffering through little helps us suffer through much, just like mentioned above. Lastly and most importantly it brings glory to God. This was all very new to me, I never understood suffering for Christ, but I must, in everything. Heaven will mean that much more. Please pray that the little things are important to me and that I will stand strong in all aspects of my life.

Serving Him,

Daniel