Recently, a high school friend has been posting on her Facebook page about some things right now she never imagined she would have to struggle with or go through. I decided to reach out and offer some words of encouragement about how God is with us during the hard times in life.

I also shared that I too have been dealing with doubts and fears during this season of my life. Then God reminded me of the lessons I learned during the hardest season of my life after my accident when I screamed God would take me away. God had to use pain to shape me and grow my faith.

For eleven months of my life when I was relearning everything, I had to be totally dependent on God. It was a time when I had to listen to God more than talk during the highs and lows. Pain is one of the purest and hardest ways  God talks to His people; because, like our Jewish forefathers, we can become prideful and need to be broken.

The idea that God’s people never suffer is one of the misconceptions many religious, ignorant people say to justify themselves and judge others. Every hardship we face in this life isn’t God’s punishment for wrongdoing, the Bible is clear that punishment for sin will be given in Hell after the judgment.

The truth is we live in a fallen world and we will face trials and hardships as long since we are strangers here. The only difference between the lost and the church is our hope is in knowing God is with us in the storms of this life and we can rest.

 Pain?

Jesus often comforted His followers that this world would hate them because it hated Him. For thousands of years, the prophets prophesied about the suffering Messiah. Jesus’ suffering wasn’t because of punishment, His suffering set Him apart from this fallen world and our pain also purifies us of our worldliness.

The Jewish culture understood that pain doesn’t necessarily mean punishment. In the Jewish culture pain was often used for training and discipline, they learned the hard way after many failures that God uses pain for our good (Proverbs 29:17)  Many died on their journey to the Promise Land because God was purifying His people of the fakes and unfaithful.

One of the clearest analogies about why God allows His people to struggle with pain is the Jewish teaching of the Refiner’s fire. God often spoke to His people from the literal fires in their lives (Exodus 3:1-4, Daniel 3:16- 28;) gold and silver stay in the fire until all of the impurities are gone, this makes the metals stronger.

Often God lets us go through hard times for more than just our good, God ultimately has a bigger purpose for His glory. This is what happened with Joseph and Jonah (Genesis 37: 2-36, Jonah 1:16-26), as well as others in the Old Testament. God allows pain and struggles into our lives to shape, guide, and grow us. For both our and His glory!

The prophets in the Old Testament were constantly ignored, tortured, or killed for obeying God instead of the people. God’s people today are no better than God’s people in the Old Testament, we cannot expect to escape the pain and trials of this life just because we believe in God—for us the best is yet to come when this world ends.

          The trials and struggles of this life are just to test our faith and see whom we truly rely on and believe in. A faith that can’t be tested, cannot be trusted. In God, I know I have all I need.

Tested?

Testing plays a big part in the Jewish culture, in the Old Testament prophets were tested to see if they were fake or truly from God. It is wise to understand that not everyone is from God and not every trial is from Satan; so be careful not to miss God’s testing, if you think you are winning at life. This has always been a stumbling block for God’s people and not just the church.

In the Jewish culture, Jewish boys are tested on their Scripture knowledge and faith when they become of age at 13.  A Jewish Mitzvah is a test to see if the boys are truly connected to God.

Jewish rabbis often tested their disciples to make sure they were learning everything their Rabbi was teaching them. The Apostle Paul and the Disciples were all tested through pain. Paul’s Damascus Road experience left him blind and with another ailment only he and God knew about, God didn’t help him by taking it away.

Peter was allowed to be sifted like the sand by Satan to strengthen and renew his faith to prepare him to lead the church (Luke 22:31-34.) Jesus comforted Peter by praying for him. Then Jesus sent us all a comforter after He endured immense pain at the cross.

Pain can make us bitter or better, if you are struggling now you can be comforted in knowing God has a purpose for it. Recently, I argued with God in prayer about some things I was struggling with and feeling lonely, inside I knew God just wanted to humble me because the struggle is real!