None of us like pain. As we mature more pains appear in our body where they never were before. It lets us know something is going wrong that needs attention. When the pain becomes severe enough, we go and see a doctor.
Pain is not always bad. Not experiencing pain when something is wrong is bad. Some people with diabetes injure their feet, experience no pain, and before they realize it, they have developed a serious ulcer.
In this world we will suffer. We will experience all types of pain and suffering, physical, emotional, and spiritual. Just because we are followers of Jesus does not give us a pass on walking through the valley of the shadow of death.
Because we are followers of Jesus our suffering matters. It has a purpose beyond forcing us to see a Dr. Suffering gives each of us opportunities to trust God on a deeper lever. Ask a follower of Jesus who has young children and is battling cancer about trusting God on a deeper level.
When someone runs a marathon, they need endurance and perseverance. Endurance to be fit enough to run a long distance. Perseverance to not quit at the halfway point from exhaustion. As followers of Jesus when we suffer, it matters. It has a purpose. It produces perseverance, which means we never give up and keep sharing God’s love with others.
“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;” Romans 5:3 NIV
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