Keeping the faith through seasons of suffering
For many Christians in Western cultures, the idea that beauty can come from suffering is counterintuitive. There’s little room for pain and discomfort in a society that idolizes a life of safety and luxury.
But what if, instead of viewing suffering as a punishment, we chose to embrace it as a privilege that both sanctifies us and allows us to know and experience God at a deeper, more intimate level?
“In this life, we all want to get on board with the new life, blessings, and abundance of knowing Christ, but we’re certainly not willing to go through crucifixion and sacrifice to find communion with Jesus,” speaker and author Jay Wolf told The Christian Post. “When we are so averse to discomfort, we miss out on something so vital to understanding who Jesus is. We’re missing out on communion with Him and with humanity. We’re missing out on a deep level of compassion if we’ve never experienced hardship.”
For Jay and his wife, Katherine, the belief that suffering is not the end of the story has sustained them through unthinkable tragedy.