Suffering

Romans 5:3-5

…We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

Your resting heart rate triples and your blood pressure goes up. Your breathing becomes rapid and you perspire excessively. Do these conditions sound like the symptoms of a heart attack? They are. But they are also the response of the physically fit body during an intense workout. 

As runners, we know that to achieve our goals, we have to put our bodies through rigorous training. Mile repeats, hill workouts, and fast strides at the end of a long distance run will cause the body to work more efficiently and achieve faster race results. Regular interval running helps us to persevere and to be successful during the goal event. We willingly endure it and deliberately work it into our schedules. But ultimately it’s a form of suffering, and the irony is that it strengthens us.

In our lives off of the running track, we also will endure suffering. Maybe you suffer from loneliness, grief, illness, or conflict. Maybe you are suffering through feelings of doubt or misunderstanding. Perhaps a job or a relationship causes suffering in your life.

Suffering, whether on or off the track, feels lonely. When you are in the midst of it, you doubt that it could possibly have a purpose. But God does not allow us to suffer alone nor in vain. Instead, during times of suffering, we have a unique promise from our Lord that suffering produces something good: perseverance. And when God teaches perseverance, He develops character. And when He develops character, He gives the gift of hope.

It seems like such an unusual chain, but just as the runner can lower his blood pressure by raising his blood pressure, God can develop something positive by raising something negative. And just as it is a scientific fact that speed training improves the cardiovascular system, it is an undeniable spiritual truth that suffering can produce hope, which does not disappoint. Let’s thank God for that gift and pray that He will open our eyes to it in the midst of suffering.

Lord God, thank you that your ways are amazing. Thank you that you can produce something as beautiful and valuable as hope out of something as difficult as suffering. Please let me know Your presence during times of suffering, and teach me through the Holy Spirit to persevere. In Jesus’ name I pray, AMEN.