KATIE POLSKI | CONTRIBUTOR
I have a friend who’s been going through a rough season. I’m not sure “rough” is an adequate word. Deep pain, unimaginable pain, has touched her marriage, her kids, and her parents all at once. She expressed recently that she simply didn’t know how to put one foot in front of the other.
Other friends are currently grieving an unwanted diagnosis and the awful effects of chemo. Several sisters are confused about how to help aging parents; and still, many are just exhausted, silently disappointed, or deeply lonely.
The honest question we ask in seasons of hurt and hardship is, “Why would God allow this?”
As honest and real as that question is, so is our response to pain in this life: anger, numbness, and striving to “just get through.”
But what would it look like to stop viewing suffering as an inconvenient detour…as an awful back road you just have to survive to reach something better? What if instead you saw your pain as part of your life with Christ… as part of belonging to his family?
Suffering is and will be a part of life until Jesus returns. We were never promised otherwise. In John 16:33, Jesus says, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
Yes, there is real pain, but do you hear the hope in that verse? Because Jesus has overcome the world, defeating sin at its root, those who belong to God can trust that even our suffering is not meaningless. In His sovereign wisdom, God works through every hardship for His good and perfect purposes and for the good of His children.
Suffering Isn’t a Sign You’re Outside God’s Love (Romans 8:17)
“…and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”
Suffering is not evidence that God has abandoned you. It’s so important to sit with that when you feel like you’re in a never-ending torrent of storms. Jesus has not left you. In fact, He’s not even distant from you in your pain. Suffering is part of our walk with Jesus. He is near – closer than you can imagine – and He is guiding you in His unending love.
We often assume that “If God loves me, life should be easier.” But that’s not what Scripture says. The Bible tells us the opposite, in fact. If instead we understand that belonging to Christ means sharing in both suffering and glory, we are less likely to become bitter or despondent in seasons of suffering.
And the truth is, almost everyone who has experienced great hardship can testify that the closeness of God is often felt most deeply in the places we never would have chosen.
So, if suffering is part of the journey, how do we actually endure it?
You Don’t Have to Be Strong Enough (Hebrews 12:1–3)
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”
The world tells you that you have inner strength to endure. If we buy into that lie, then we feel like utter failures when life just feels like too much—we feel like we’ve fallen short when we need help. But sister, you are not called to power through pain. Nowhere does the Bible tells us that. Instead, as a child of God, you are invited to lean into Christ’s strength.
When I ran a marathon several years back, I had a friend who met me halfway through. I had a panic attack nearing the finish line, and had it not been for my friend, I’m not sure I would have finished. But she held me up (quite literally) and helped me cross that finish line while I leaned right into her.
Endurance, friends, doesn’t come from your own strength. It comes from looking to Jesus—from turning to Him and admitting to Him, “I can’t do it, Lord, but I know through you, I can do what you’ve called me to do.”
In suffering, our tendency is to distract ourselves, to isolate, or to self-soothe. These responses are common, but they don’t ultimately help us to endure. Sister, how would it change your perspective if you first fixed your eyes on Jesus. He understands suffering personally, and He endured it for the joy set before Him. That joy includes you.
Your Pain Is Not Pointless (Romans 8:28)
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Even when we don’t understand, we can know that God is working with intentional, loving purpose. I know this verse can feel cliché or even painful when it’s misused. Because the truth is, not all things are good.
But what is good is that our God works through all things for good. And here’s what’s remarkable. As He’s working through all things—weaving together a masterpiece that to us appear as single, insignificant threads—He is simultaneously working in us. You can have confidence that God will give you what you need, when you need it, to remain faithful and endure. You are not expected to have strength for tomorrow—only dependence for today.
God doesn’t pre-load strength. He provides it in real time. Do you see how miraculous that is? How good that is to not have to fret over our worst-case scenario? Because even if that worst case comes, God promises to give you what you need in that moment to keep looking up and to trust in His perfect plan. The grace you need isn’t stored up for someday; it meets you in the moment you need it.
Sister, the pain you’re carrying today may feel unbearable, but what you can trust is that in the hands of your heavenly Father, that pain is never wasted. And one day, when Christ returns, you will see that even the deepest pain was held in the hands of a God who never wasted a single tear.
Editor’s Note: Katie’s new devotional, You are a Child of God, releases soon with New Growth Press. Learn more about it here.
Photo by Priscilla Du Preez 🇨🇦 on Unsplash
