Suffering...

I have subscribed to a site which sends me quotes from the Bible every day. And what I received today is truly amazing. It has made me understand the true meaning of the things that has been happening to me for quite some time now. This site sent me a passage about Lazarus’ sickness and death and how Jesus raised him from death. This passage has given me the answer to the question which I had been asking myself for so long – why am I suffering so much?

Here’s an excerpt from the “encouragement” I received today – “When God’s answer to prayer seems to be no—when He seems to ignore your desperate pleas—it’s likely that He has a bigger, grander plan. Perhaps your own suffering is a necessary (though temporary) part of it. Can you believe this, trust it, and test it in your own experience? This particular line about ‘suffering’ has answered my question which had been tormenting me for so long. I have understood it today. I have understood why I suffered the way I did and will not get discouraged by it anymore. I have understood that suffering is a Christian’s path to glory. I suffered because I had to be glorified by Him. Jesus has glorified me in my suffering. I have understood that I will have a new life patterned after the glorified life of Jesus Christ. There is a purpose and redemption in my suffering.

The Bible has so much to say about SUFFERING. Jesus said, “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” – John 16:33. It’s also written that “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were. For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake”. Philippians 1:29. “...count it all joy when you fall into it...” I have understood that suffering leads to spiritual maturity.

The Cross is the central symbol of the Catholic religion. It is a symbol of suffering, and our religion makes much of suffering. Christ suffered on the Cross and achieved eternal glory. Much in the same way, we have to suffer daily on our individual Crosses to gain that eternal glory from our Father in heaven. For Jesus also told His disciples that those who humble themselves will be exalted and I feel that suffering is kind of humbling oneself in the sight of God. It has also been mentioned in the Bible that “Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted”.

The more you suffer, the more you deserve to gain. It’s clearly mentioned in Isaiah 53:10 “Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer…” The Father caused Jesus to suffer and exalted Him to great heights. He will do the same for us. He is doing the same for me. I have understood it so very well today. I always used to question myself why this thing was happening to me and today when I read those lovely words in the first paragraph, I understood everything. I understood that I had to suffer so that God could exalt me spiritually because He has planned wonderful things for me. And I can already see and understand and appreciate all the wonderful things that are happening to me right now around me.

My suffering started since 2010 and it was from that time that I am also getting exalted spiritually. Jesus is trying to draw me closer and closer to Him. He wants me to suffer more so that He can exalt me more and keep me close to His heart. I guess this was the reason I was born. God knew me from the time I was formed in my mother’s womb and had called me by my name Jubilee as He wanted me to follow Him. All His great plans for me started from the time I was conceived and so no harm came to me when my mother tried to abort me. Jesus kept me alive as He wanted me to be born and be one of His faithful followers. Oh how clear everything is to me now; as clear as the morning light – my meeting with my Golu, our inter-religion marriage, my conversion, my faith, my suffering, my becoming an animator, my joining the Bible Course, and now me being a catechist – the entire process was so well planned by Jesus much before I was born – He has been a driving force in giving my life its true direction – and so I had to suffer the way I did so that I could be more faithful to Him and able to call Him mine with a true heart. Thank you Lord for making me understand all this today. There is indeed joy in suffering – I can already foresee the joy which awaits me!

My suffering has actually being a blessing because it helped in fulfilling God’s great plans for me. “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake” (Col. 1:24a). I had to dedicate myself in finding joy in Christ. Suffering has been a part of the proof of my genuine faith and it is the God-ordained pathway to glory and everlasting joy for me. My joy has risen from sorrow and therefore can now withstand all grief. Just the way Job suffered and was exalted, much in the same way, I have been exalted in my suffering. The same thing has happened with me. And so I have found a deep meaning even in Job’s suffering.

The joy of suffering is that it brings us closer to Jesus Christ. As a convert I didn’t know that in order to embrace Christ truly, I had to also embrace suffering the way He did. I had to know that the normal Christian life is to be a life of joy not in the midst of parties and celebrations but amidst brokenness and suffering. I had to experience this suffering and sorrow because I had to be blessed; only suffering could bring blessing from Christ. I had to lose my earthly dignity to gain spiritual dignity in Christ because suffering has actually drawn me nearer to God and now I need to maintain this dignity till the end of my life. Just the way Jesus endured the shame and suffering of the Cross so that God would be glorified, I have to endure my suffering to be glorified. In fact I am being glorified right now but there are more things to come. I am sure this is just the beginning. I know God has further plans for me. Something in me, most probably the Holy Spirit, says that I have embraced Christianity in order to exalt Christ’s name. A voice within me always says that through my writing I have to take Jesus’ name higher and higher and keep praising Him all the time. From now on I will learn to rejoice in my suffering I underwent.

Suffering always comes back to rejoicing in Christ. So I should rejoice that I suffered because without my suffering I couldn’t glorify His name. The joy comes to me from the discovery of the meaning of this suffering today. Through my suffering, I choose to seek consolation in God and become closer to Him.

So, “rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven…”!