Devotional Thought of the Day

⁶  Be glad about this, even though it may now be necessary for you to be sad for a while because of the many kinds of trials you suffer. ⁷  Their purpose is to prove that your faith is genuine. Even gold, which can be destroyed, is tested by fire; and so your faith, which is much more precious than gold, must also be tested, so that it may endure. Then you will receive praise and glory and honor on the Day when Jesus Christ is revealed. ⁸  You love him, although you have not seen him, and you believe in him, although you do not now see him. So you rejoice with a great and glorious joy which words cannot express, ⁹  because you are receiving the salvation of your souls, which is the purpose of your faith in him. 1 Peter 1:6-9 (TEV)

¹⁰  “Stop fighting,” he says, “and know that I am God, supreme among the nations, supreme over the world.” ¹¹  The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Psalm 46:10-11 (TEV)

70         You asked me if I had a cross to bear. And I answered, “Yes, we always have to bear the Cross.” But it is a glorious Cross, a divine seal, the authentic guarantee of our being children of God. That is why we always walk along happily with the Cross. (1)

I have been “suffering” with a head cold for about a week.  I loathe such things because I can not take medicines that would reverse the symptoms.  It’s not really suffering persay, but it is discomforting, it wrecks my normal patterns, it destroys the idea I have control.

All suffering, minor like my cold, or the real suffering people go through have that effect.  Suffering wrecks the normal nature of our world.  Even when we embrace suffering and sacrifice out of love for someone else, it can become something that robs us of our joy.

It doesn’t have to.

For in or suffering, whether forced upon us or chosen, whether great or small, can reveal something to us.  We aren’t alone.  For we get through such times knowing the presence of God.  We find out our faith is real, that it is not hollow words.  Because we find out the Lord in whom we trust, in whom we depend, in whom we have faith, is real.  And He is with us.

As we slow down, as we tire of the agitation and anxiety, we find ourselves kept in Christ, treasured by his love. We find ourselves in peace, one we can’t explain, one that is impossible, one that comes from God being our refuge, our sanctuary.

It is from that point we find our joy exploding, the love of God so overwhelming and transforming that it resonates within us, and causes others to know that joy as well.

The suffering isn’t the blessing, yet it is a source of the blessing, as it drives us to God.

Such is our life in Christ.

For we know His mercy, and His love, and His peace….

(1)  Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 514-517). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.