The Gift of Suffering"My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" These are the familiar words of Jesus, while suffering on the cross. These are also familiar words spoken by my clients during their time of suffering. God can seem absent in our greatest struggles and suffering. Some Christians are ashamed at the questions they have regarding God. I have found myself surprised by the fact that I am hurting or struggling, thinking that somehow I should be immune since I am a Christian. Or I may ask, why does God not intervene? At this time there are often some distortions about our view of God. A few of these are as follows?
To summarize Paul Tournier, pain is the gift that no one wants. Pain is seen as something to be denied, rather than something to be grasped. However, pain identifies a problem that we would not be aware of otherwise. The time of struggle provides an opportunity to reassess or acknowledge our concept and expectation of God. We can pursue God by asking tough questions of God, that do not have simple A, B, C answers. This is a time to readjust the lens and refocus our view of God, to see Him in a truer light. Often people are also afraid of the silence of God. Ps. 46:10 asks us to "Be still and know that I am God." Could silence permit time to question and evaluate ourselves and God, thereby allowing us to hear God in a profound way, rather than signify the absence of God? We come through suffering in many different ways. Pain is the gift not many of us enjoy but without pain, we may remain complacent about our understanding of God. I am becoming aware that God is refining me and my view of Him. God is teaching me that He is not changing or reshaping Himself to conform to the image I want of Him, but His plan is to reveal to me a more accurate picture of who He is and who He wants me to be. Cheryl Webb |