Suffering
is unavoidable. It comes without warning. Sometimes it takes us by surprise. It
can shatter or strengthen us. It can be the source of great bitterness or
abounding joy. It can be the means by which our faith is destroyed. Or it can
be the tool through which our faith is deepened. The outcome hinges not on the
nature or source of our adversity, but on the character and spirit of our
response. Our response to adversity will for the most part be determined by our
reason for living, our purpose for being on this earth, as we see it.
If
you are a child of God whose heart’s desire is to see God glorified through
you, adversity would not put you down for the count. There will be those
initial moments of shock and confusion. But the man or woman who has God’s
perspective on this life and the life to come will always emerge. Job is a
typical Old Testament example of saint who was inundated by adversity but with
God’s help he prevailed.
