Suffering

I do not believe for one second that suffering at the hand of another is directly related to a past sin we committed.

The other day, one of my friends asked me why some people are made to suffer, in a relationship for example, while others seem to have such a pleasant life, happily married with children and grandchildren.

And she commented that I believe that those who suffer in this life will not necessarily suffer in the next…which I do believe. I had much rather suffer on earth than in hell, but that is another topic.

Still, I am at a loss for an answer to her question.

I do not feel that I did anything to deserve the way I am treated. I do not think it is my ‘fault’ that I have suffered abuse.

I guess I choose to look at the blessings instead of the curse.

My children are my blessings. They are literally the reason I get up in the morning and come home every evening. They are my reasons for living.

And more than just them, but I have some people I think the world of and I need to be an example for them.

Everyone struggles with something and if there is no one to go before them to lead the way, how can they be encouraged?

I do my best to stay upbeat for myself and anyone else who could possibly see me. There are people I know who are going through hell on earth and while not many people know it, they always have a smiling face…yet they are crumbling on the inside.

Every once in a while, I start to crack…my porcelain smile fades and the weight I carry droops my shoulders. I take my moment. I say a prayer. I wipe my eyes. I stand up straight. I take a deep breath, hold it and let it out slowly. I lift my head from off my chest and put my smile back on.

But I do not think that I did anything wrong to cause my relationship to be so hard. I just don’t believe that way.

See, the Bible states that everything works to good for them that love the LORD. If that is true, which I believe it is, then there will be good to come…not out of some past evil or because of a past evil, but because to get to the good, there has to be a show of faith.

Look at the Children of Israel going to their promised land. They traveled 400 years and suffered many hardships before ever crossing over to their home. They had to have faith unwavering.

Look at Job. He did absolutely nothing wrong and suffered great loss on every side, but because his faith in GOD was pure, look how he regained all he lost and more.

Job is an excellent example of faith through tribulation.

Maybe I’m wrong. But I am going to choose to believe that this trial is testing my faith that GOD knows best and HE has something much better in store for me.