A Biblical Response to Suffering by David Speer
Assistant Area Directors Caribbean General
One of the deepest weaknesses of our day is the inability to deal with calamity as a normal part of life. Because we often spend so much time trying to create our own heaven on earth (comfort, security), when a situation occurs where we suffer, we are prone to think that God is mad at us or that we have done something wrong. I find that even as a missionary, I am not immune to that same tendency.
In the last few chapters of Acts, we see a great example of a better way to respond to suffering. Paul was falsely accused and arrested and then spent years being coerced by the governor for a bride to let him go. When a new governor finally heard his case two years later, Paul was forced to appeal to Caesar to get a fair hearing. While on the way to Rome to appear before him, the ship Paul was on was caught in a terrible storm that was so bad that no one ate for weeks and then ultimately shipwrecked on the island of Malta. It was cold and rainy that day, so the people of the island built a fire for those that were on the ship. When Paul added some sticks to the fire, a viper jumped out and bit him!
In the midst of all of his suffering, Paul kept his attitude in check and his connection to the Holy Spirit stayed strong in spite of the things he had endured. He didn't blame God or focus on his situation but instead looked for opportunities to demonstrate the Spirit's power in the midst of hardship. The result? The people of Malta heard the good news and witnessed a demonstration of the Spirit's power to heal.
The reality is that suffering is a normal part of life (John 16:35). So what was it that kept Paul keenly focused in the midst of so much difficulty? Truthfully, I find it hard to choose just one or two examples from his writings because they are full of passages that would serve to give us strength. But one of the passages found in Romans 8:35 NIV, 38-39 ESV, that I think goes right to the heart of the matter and helps us refocus says, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble
or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?....For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor
things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be
able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
I believe that at the bottom of every incorrect response to suffering you will find some kind of fear--fear that you are suffering because of something you did or didn't do, fear of being alone, fear of the unknown, fear of disaster or failure. It is only when we are confidently resting in the fact that we are the dearly loved children of a good God that the fear will be driven out and we will be enabled to look past the momentary trouble and focus instead of the opportunities around us.
I believe that at the bottom of every incorrect response to suffering you will find some kind of fear--fear that you are suffering because of something you did or didn't do, fear of being alone, fear of the unknown, fear of disaster or failure. It is only when we are confidently resting in the fact that we are the dearly loved children of a good God that the fear will be driven out and we will be enabled to look past the momentary trouble and focus instead of the opportunities around us.
