The Truth About Finding Beauty in Suffering
Have you ever been so lost in an author’s poetic language that you missed the message of the book? That almost happened to me while reading a well-written book about suffering. Once I read more carefully, however, I realized those beautiful phrases disguised an unbiblical perspective.
Readers were encouraged to embrace suffering as a means to discover its beauty. The author’s philosophy was to dive into the pain and enjoy the swim. But doggy-paddling in suffering will never help you move forward. How can you swim through seas of sorrow if you have no concept of the shore that awaits?
Why would anyone want to dive into the gut-wrenching pain of loss, the shock of a sudden diagnosis, or the injustice of brutality?
How do you find strength by leaning into excruciating cancer pain or the agony of depression?
What beauty is there in witnessing your loved one suffer?
Jesus acknowledges our troubles by saying, “In this world you will have trouble.” However, Jesus does not burden us further by advising us to lean into our troubles. Instead, he tells us to be encouraged and lean into him, “But take heart; I have overcome the world!” (John 16:33)
We can follow the world’s advice to dive into our pain and consider it beautiful. Or we can become beautifully transformed when we acknowledge the pain and dive into Christ.
Our suffering can lead us to discover a deeper closeness with Jesus Christ, who suffered for us to lead us to something better. The apostle Paul said, “But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering. Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later” (Romans 8:17-18).
My Story of Suffering
Over twenty years ago, when diagnosed with fibromyalgia and Interstitial Cystitis, this was my heart’s cry, “Lord, stop my pain. I cannot live like this.” But the pain did not stop. As a matter of fact, it got worse. After an accident shattered my dominant hand, I was diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), a debilitating painful disease that spread throughout my body. Now, I could no longer walk and needed to use a scooter.
God taught me that I could live with abundant joy and faith despite unceasing pain and disability. He used the fiery pain of CRPS to burn away everything that kept me from fully depending upon Him. I’d already cultivated the habit of daily prayer and Bible study, but Jesus met me in a deeper way during my bedridden and homebound misery.
Aggressive advanced-stage cancer arrived fourteen years after my first diagnosis and seven years after my CRPS diagnosis. By that time, God had fully equipped me to face this difficult diagnosis. The Lord who graciously met me in my pain and carried me in my crucible was not about to abandon me. As my maladies increased, so did my faith in the One who carried me through them.
Once again, cancer is rapidly growing and spreading in my body. But incurable cancer will never outgrow, outlast, or outlive incurable faith in Jesus Christ. I can claim with confidence, “My heart and my flesh may fail, but the Lord is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Psalm 73:26).
Suffering is a Tool for Transformation
The crucible of suffering is the heat that refines our faith. The sanctification process involves pain but comes with a promise: Our heavy suffering will never add up to the glory we will one day receive. The apostle Paul said it this way, “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all” (2 Corinthians 4:17).
Afflictions that refine us are the difficult means to a glorious end. But we will quickly lose hope if we elevate the sanctification process above its purpose in our lives.
Embracing a Biblical Perspective
We don’t rejoice in our suffering because there is inherent joy in suffering; we rejoice in our suffering because it refines our faith—of greater worth than gold. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” (James 1:2-4).
Have you ever heard the saying, “Keep your eye on the prize?” The end result of our faith is the salvation of our souls. (1 Peter 1:9) Run the race to get the prize, don’t merely run the race for the sake of running. Remember the aid stations that give refreshment along the way—the verses that quench your thirst and help you to keep running.
For those who hurt and wonder, “How long, Lord?” God is with you in this place. “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you” (Deuteronomy 31:8).
For those who are swamped by sorrow... Sorrow is not your forever song. Mourning is not your everlasting music. “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning” (Psalm 30:5 NKJV).
For those who are weak, losing hope, and edging toward despair... Fix your eyes and thoughts on “Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2 ESV).
Consider it pure joy that your faith is worthy of being tested. Beloved, the sanctification process will lead you to completeness in Christ. What hurts today will bring future wholeness as you rely on God. You can joyfully embrace the hope of your salvation, for “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him” (1Corinthians 2:9 NLT). Your faithful endurance will be overwhelmingly worth the end reward.
