Have you ever had to endure difficult circumstances? I’m certain many would answer yes. Suffering is universal. Everyone will face trials and tribulations at some point. The Bible assures us that all Christians share in the same suffering (1 Peter 5:9.)

I, too, have had my share of suffering. It’s an inescapable part of life. I don’t find it enjoyable, but it’s inevitable.

We learn about God and ourselves 

I have had many challenges in my life. One of the most difficult trials I have ever had to face was my husband’s stroke and subsequent disability. There were times when I felt despair. I felt like quitting, but God faithfully comforted and encouraged me. Sometimes, I still despair when I think about the future. However, it teaches me to fix my eyes on Jesus and not on my circumstances. The future remains uncertain for everyone. Our faith is not in our ability to control the future, but in God’s ability to care for us. Suffering has taught me more about God’s faithfulness than good times have done, and it has brought me insight into my own weaknesses and strengths. Testing brings out my mettle, so to speak.

The purpose of suffering 

I struggle to comprehend why my husband had a stroke and why he remains disabled. I don’t understand why we are in such difficult and painful circumstances. But one thing I know is that God is faithful. He will never leave or forsake us. For me the purpose of suffering is to cause us to turn to God, seek Him, and rely on His strength, and not our own abilities.

God will never fail us. 

Misguided comfort 

People have often tried to comfort me by telling me that God wouldn’t allow me to be tested beyond what I could endure. I am sure it was well-meant, but it’s not the truth. Yes, I know that we have a promise that God will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we can endure (1 Corinthians 10:13) but tests and trials, the difficulties of life, are not mere temptations. The Apostle Paul’s experience clarifies this distinction.

Paul’s experience 

Paul couldn’t have made this any clearer. We read his statement about his own suffering in 2 Corinthians, chapter 1. I don’t know what your translation of the Bible says, but mine says that Paul was “weighed down with troubles” and “crushed and overwhelmed beyond [his] ability to endure.” This is a serious statement. Paul was no stranger to trials and suffering. One would think that he would be resilient, but he thought that he would die. Yet, despite all of this, he praised God for His mercy and comfort. 
We think you ought to know, dear brothers and sisters, about the trouble we went through in the province of Asia. We were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure, and we thought we would never live through it. In fact, we expected to die. But as a result, we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely only on God, who raises the dead (2 Corinthians 1:8-9).

Like Paul, the apostle James also teaches us to view our troubles as an opportunity for growth.

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing (James 1:2-4).

I would like to be complete, lacking in nothing. What I don’t like to hear is that this path leads through suffering.  

So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you (1 Peter 4:19).

Beyond growth, God promises blessings for those who endure.

God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him (James 1:12).

What does blessing mean?

I love to hear that God will bless me when I endure, but what does this mean? Have you ever wondered about God’s blessings? Does it mean we will be rich, with many possessions and lots of money in the bank? What do you think about when you hear that God’s blessing will make us rich, and He will add no sorrow with it? Do we equate blessings and riches with fleeting things like money and possessions? These things will last only for a short while, but have no eternal value. 

Physical comforts

It is true that money and possessions can make our lives comfortable. Money can buy many comforts, but it can’t buy peace of heart and mind, the peace that only God can provide. Neither can it shield us from physical or emotional pain.

I once heard someone say that it’s better to cry in a Porsche than in a Volkswagen. Yes, a Porsche provides more comfort than a Volkswagen Beetle. Money can make life comfortable, but it can never protect us from pain, suffering, sickness, disease, and ultimately death. Money can’t protect us from the surprises that life constantly brings. Money can buy comfort, but it cannot shield us from life’s deeper trials.

No, the blessing we have on earth includes suffering. To understand God’s blessings, we must reconsider what true riches mean in His eyes.

God is our great and eternal reward

God’s greatest blessing for us is Himself. He gave Himself to us, and He wants us to give ourselves to Him. Though capable of preventing suffering, He often allows it. He does, however, place limits on our suffering. We can read about this in the Book of Job.

Why then does He bless us with suffering? He wants to teach us to trust Him, rely on Him, draw close to Him, and grow in our relationship with Him. He wants to develop our character. He wants us to become more like Jesus, who Himself learned obedience through suffering.

Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered (Hebrews 5:8).

I don’t know what your circumstances are. I don’t know whether you are suffering because of illness, war, natural disasters, your own mistakes, or the actions of others. It doesn’t matter what the cause of our suffering is. What matters is that we turn to God and rely on Him. Don’t look at the future and everything you have to endure. It leads to fear and despair. Trust God in every way, every minute of each day. He will not fail you.