At the new year, I shared a prayer by John Wesley. In that prayer is the line, “put me to suffering.” This line makes me uncomfortable. I don’t want to suffer. I want to alleviate suffering for myself and others.
I was chatting with the wife of the pastor who introduced me to the prayer. She confessed she doesn’t say that line. I need to confess when I say that line, I follow it with a rebuttal. I remind God that I have suffered enough for a lifetime and that I don’t need to be put to suffering. I ask to be serve is some other way.
The more I reflected on this it became clear there can be a benefit to suffering. Suffering has taught me about the depths of love. It has taught me how far God will go to restore me from my suffering. It has built my character and instilled hope.
3 Not only so, but we[c] also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. (Romans 5: 3-5 NIV).
In the midst of the suffering, I could only focus on getting through it. Some of the suffering was in the healing. I had to revisit the original pain. I had to dig into the pile of yuck I had experienced. I had to change the meaning it carried in my life. It was the only way to get to the character and hope God was producing within me.
God’s plan to build within us Christ likeness often includes suffering. I don’t know anyone who hasn’t experienced in some way. God takes the darkness this world takes out on us and uses it to build a character of love and grace. I don’t want to suffer, but I do want to grow in love and grace.
Are you able to say, “put me to suffering?” Do you see God working in you through it? Share your story here and breathe life and bring hope to others.