Suffering, sacrifice, and salvation are woven together throughout the pages of scripture and Christian history. C. S. Lewis said: “I’m not sure God wants us to be happy. I think he wants us to love, and be loved. But we are like children, thinking our toys will make us happy and the whole world is our nursery. Something must drive us out of that nursery and into the lives of others, and that something is suffering.”
Stanzy Roeder spoke this morning with a powerful teaching on suffering. She knows of what she speaks. She endured a cancer diagnosis and the ravages of the treatment as a teenager, and she now brings music and other arts to the bedsides of cancer patients, listening to their stories and sharing in their suffering. Stanzy has suffered and has a heart for those who suffer. She now devotes her life and career to others who are suffering.
Stanzy says says that from her experience it is Christians - those who profess a living and personal relationship with Jesus - who have the hardest time with suffering and it's presence in their lives. Somehow our culture, and perhaps particularly our Christian culture, leaves us wondering: "How could this be happening? How could this be happening TO ME? Where is God? Is God truly good?"
INVITATION: What does the Bible have to say about suffering? Why does our Christian culture seem to skim over suffering and default to what is sometimes called "toxic positivity" when suffering is woven all throughout life and faith? Are you ready to be driven out of the "nursery" of surface faith and dive deep with Jesus? Even if it includes suffering (and it will)? Join in this week as we venture into some of these topics:
MONDAY: 2 Corinthians 4:8-18: This "book"--like all Paul's new testament epistles--was actually a letter written to the church at Corinth. They were suffering from many of the same things as the American church does today: preacher (human) worship, materialism, universalism, etc. As you read these verses, jot down or otherwise note the ways the believers are "hard pressed on every side". Sometimes naming things gives them less power and control over us. It takes them from the dark into the light and can become prayer. Take some time today and name things that are making you feel "hard pressed". The last verse indicates that "fixing our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen" and what is eternal as opposed to what is temporary is key. How can you ask God to help you have an eternal perspective about the things that are pressing in on you today?
TUESDAY: I Corinthians 10:13 & 2 Corinthians 1:8-9: Many people, usually with good intentions, tell those who are suffering that "God won't give you more than you can handle." Often people even assume and attribute this saying to scripture. How does the scripture from 1 Corinthians clarify this saying for you? How does it rearrange your ideas and understanding about suffering and hardships? The verses from 2 Corinthians indicate that in His grace, God WILL give you more than you can handle. But there is a purpose. Maybe it is even a "severe mercy" type of gift from God. It's so you can experience His power! Spend some time reflecting on when you have experienced the power and presence of the Holy Spirit during a time of suffering and hardship. How does that make you feel about God? Are you angry? Can you be honest about that with God today? Or, if you are grateful, perhaps that is a place for prayer as well.
WEDNESDAY: Job 13:4-6 & 12: Job's friends tried to give reasons and platitudes regarding his suffering. Job experienced what is known as "toxic positivity" from his friends. Bad things DO happen. We are real, live, breathing humans that DO have hard and negative emotions about these bad things. There IS evil in the world. It CAN get overwhelming. The Psalms are full of laments and anguished emotions being expressed (See for example Psalm 116:1-13). Jesus taught that "blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." There IS a time and a place for actually walking through the "valley of the shadow of death." (Psalm 23). However, you are never alone in any dark valley or emotion or situation. And Stanzy had some wise words about walking alongside others who are experiencing this valley: Nothing you say can make it all better. Often just the presence of another person is all that's needed. You don't have to have the "magic" words because there are none.....no matter how "true" or "right" or "scriptural" they might be, sometimes presence is THE healing element. Why do we always think we need words? More often, all a person needs is to feel like they are not alone. Are you uncomfortable in the presence of someone who is suffering or in pain? If so, Stanzy suggested the possibility that you may not have visited your own deeply wounded and hurt places. As you think about that and these verses, is there an invitation from God to ask him into your unhealed hurts and wounds? Healing comes when we allow God to break open our hearts and allow HIS light into our lives.....even in the dark "valleys of the shadow of death." Perhaps the previous days suggestion of even naming (or writing) these unhealed places might be helpful to bring them to light? If you need help with this, please e-mail prayer@rockhills.comfor prayer and for referral for Spiritual Direction or to meet with someone.
THURSDAY: Matthew 26:30 & 36-39 & Hebrews 12:2: Jesus had a preference. It was to NOT suffer. Just like you and just like me. Jesus knows how hard it is for us and on us. He was fully man and experienced the same emotions we do. Yet he ultimately trusted God the Father. The journey toward the cross and suffering on the cross is proof that no matter what suffering and hardship comes your way, it has NOTHING to do with God not loving you. That argument is void. You may not understand the reasoning behind your suffering, but you can trust that God loves you. Is that enough? Have you appropriated the depths of the love of Jesus for you? How might you walk in that today?
FRIDAY: Hebrews 12:2: It was for the JOY set before him that Jesus endured the cross. That joy is YOU and ME. The cross is the great reversal. Adam and Eve sinned and brought sin and shame into the world. Jesus conquered sin and shame. And he trusted the ultimate plan of his Father and did it with joy. Even though he had a personal preference to have the "cup" taken from him. You are loved with an everlasting and eternal love. In his book "Surrender to Love," David Benner writes: "Growth in love in not an accomplishment but the receipt of a gift," Have you received the gift of the love of Jesus, or are you still trying to try to earn that love? How might you surrender to love today?
SATURDAY: 2 Corinthians 4:16-18: Are you being changed and renewed inwardly? If you're honest with yourself, are you still in the "nursery" that C.S. Lewis referred to and playing with "toys?" Stanzy emphasized in her teaching that "healing comes when we allow God to break open our hearts and let the light in." Are you willing to allow the one who died for you to break open your heart and let His light shine through? Are you ready to "surrender to love" and be broken open for healing and renewal?