TWO KINDS OF SUFFERING
He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. Isa. 53:3, R.S.V.
A young mother looks tenderly into the eyes of her terminally ill child. She fights back the tears; the lump in her throat is too large for her to speak. Oh, how she cherishes that little life with a love measured by her suffering.
An insecure teenage girl rushes to the window to watch through hot tears as her first boyfriend walks toward the road. He has just broken up with her, and she is sure the world will end before sundown. His attentions to her were the center of her very existence to a degree measured now by her suffering.
To the extent that one loves, to that same extent one is vulnerable to suffering. To the extent that one is self-centered and insecure, to that same extent one is also vulnerable to suffering. But they are two different kinds of suffering! The first kind is rooted in the hurting of the ones who are loved. The second kind is rooted in the failure to be loved.
The suffering of one who is able to love produces character growth as he struggles in every way to bring healing and hope to another who is hurting. He longs for larger capacities of the heart, deeper sensitivities of the soul, more perseverance in prayer. But the suffering of the one who is not loved often inhibits character growth, as he grasps, manipulates, and maneuvers to get other people to reduce the hurt in his heart.
There is a flippant view of the Christian life that suggests that becoming a Christian means launching into a trouble-free life--walking on the sunny side of the street, whistling bright tunes, with the wind at our backs and a smile always on our faces. People who succumb to this view of Christianity are always stunned (and then disappointed in God) when they have to suffer the realities of this grubby planet.
Those who walk with their Master do not escape suffering; rather they exchange the nature of their suffering. They move from destructive suffering to constructive suffering, from energy-draining hurt to stretching and growing hurt.
Jesus is a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief--because He loves so much! He grieves for the emptiness, the hurt, the confusion, and the self-deception in the lives of all of us encompassed in His great heart of love.
He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. Isa. 53:3, R.S.V.
A young mother looks tenderly into the eyes of her terminally ill child. She fights back the tears; the lump in her throat is too large for her to speak. Oh, how she cherishes that little life with a love measured by her suffering.
An insecure teenage girl rushes to the window to watch through hot tears as her first boyfriend walks toward the road. He has just broken up with her, and she is sure the world will end before sundown. His attentions to her were the center of her very existence to a degree measured now by her suffering.
To the extent that one loves, to that same extent one is vulnerable to suffering. To the extent that one is self-centered and insecure, to that same extent one is also vulnerable to suffering. But they are two different kinds of suffering! The first kind is rooted in the hurting of the ones who are loved. The second kind is rooted in the failure to be loved.
The suffering of one who is able to love produces character growth as he struggles in every way to bring healing and hope to another who is hurting. He longs for larger capacities of the heart, deeper sensitivities of the soul, more perseverance in prayer. But the suffering of the one who is not loved often inhibits character growth, as he grasps, manipulates, and maneuvers to get other people to reduce the hurt in his heart.
There is a flippant view of the Christian life that suggests that becoming a Christian means launching into a trouble-free life--walking on the sunny side of the street, whistling bright tunes, with the wind at our backs and a smile always on our faces. People who succumb to this view of Christianity are always stunned (and then disappointed in God) when they have to suffer the realities of this grubby planet.
Those who walk with their Master do not escape suffering; rather they exchange the nature of their suffering. They move from destructive suffering to constructive suffering, from energy-draining hurt to stretching and growing hurt.
Jesus is a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief--because He loves so much! He grieves for the emptiness, the hurt, the confusion, and the self-deception in the lives of all of us encompassed in His great heart of love.
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