“The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths.”
Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
“And how much more so the person of Jesus who emerged from the depths of suffering into a kind of beautiful strength the world had never seen.”
Katherine Wolf
To all my friends and family who have suffered or are in a season of suffering:
Jesus makes beauty out of ashes and brings brokenness to boldness , but only when He is allowed to move freely in our lives.
There are times when He restores what has been broken, and other times, he builds anew. But whether He is rebuilding or creating, He makes purpose out of our pain.
Suffering looks different for all of us. It comes in packages we could have never imagined. Suffering comes by way of loss of a loved one that leaves an emptiness so great you find yourself in an abyss of darkness with no glimmer of light.
Suffering comes as death of a marriage for an unexpecting spouse left with a broken heart and shattered dreams.
Suffering comes packaged in skin when those who were for you are now against you. Friends betray, and walk away without caution or care leaving gaping wounds that leave mistrust in people.
Suffering comes through tragedy that blindsides, rendering you defeated and defenseless.
Suffering comes when there is an unexpected diagnosis, child struggling with a mental or physical impairment or just struggling, a lying tongue, a broken family, or a loney life, and carries with it a ripple affect of pain and disillusion so intense, you often wonder if you can survive your new reality.
It hits us when we are the most unassuming, and the most vulnerable. As ready and grounded as believe we are for the fiery pains of this world, we are never ready for the explosive package delivered. But God is always ready.
Nothing takes Jesus by surprise. He didn’t just learn of our suffering when we cried out to Him in pain. And although it may feel, and even seem like He has abandoned us in our time of greatest need, He has been working it out for our good and for His glory all along.
We don’t have to look too far in Scripture to see that suffering leads to victory. If it wasn’t for the suffering of Jesus, victory would have never prevailed. Nobody knew that the gruesome suffering that took place on the cross would lead to the most beautiful, precious, glorious victory. A victory that brings hope, healing, and eternal life. That victory was achieved only through suffering.
There is a Kingdom picture being painted where the sufferings of this world and this life are grafted into the majesty of eternity. Where our suffering will bring victory.
We don’t see our suffering leading us anywhere but desperation. But if that desperation pushes us into an unrelenting pursuit of Jesus, we will one day see His mighty glory.
When we chase after Jesus in our darkest hour, our weakest moment, our deepest pain, He chases us back. He presses in, and releases a power that draws us into a deeper, closer more intimate relationship with Him.
Every season of suffering can bring a transformation of glory that radiates that would otherwise not be seen absent our pain.
There are no shortcuts through the journey, but there is a Savior who longs to shower grace and mercy from His throne and walk every step of the way.
Jesus weaves together the pain and suffering of our stories into the fabric of our testimony. Nothing is wasted or purposeless.
Hang on in your suffering. Hope in His truth. And cling to the One that makes all things beautiful. You are a product of the King and He is the author of your life. He will bring to completion what He started.