The key to suffering rightly is to see in all things the hand of a merciful and good and sovereign God and "to live upon God that is invisible." There is more of God to be had in times of suffering than any other time.
-John Piper
Let me beg of thee, that thou wilt not be offended either with God, or men, if the cross is laid heavy upon thee. Not with God, for he doth nothing without a cause, nor with men, for . . . they are the servants of God to thee for good.(Psalm 17:14 KJV; Jer. 24:5). Take therefore what comes to thee from God by them, thankfully.
-John Bunyan
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
God is Sovereign (even over our suffering!)
I have been told by a number of people things to the effect that "It's good to know that even though God did not cause our suffering (even though we are suffering only because of man's fallennes), God can still turn it around for good." I have to say that I disagree with this statement. I believe that God is completely sovereign over all things - even over our suffering. After Joseph's brothers sold him into slavery and he experienced great suffering at the hands of the Egyptians, he said to his brothers, "It was not you who sent me here, but God." (Gen 45:8) And later he told them, "you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good." (Gen 50:20) Yes, God is sovereign even over other people's evil intentions. God has a plan even in our suffering - Not despite our suffering. God is not surprised by what we are going through. He is not left scrambling to find a way to work this together for our good. Rather, he planned our suffering because he knows that it is for good. We can be thankful that he is graciously allowing us to go through pain that we may know more of his goodness and mercy. He does have a sovereign plan in what we are going through, and we trust in His promises and His faithfulness.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Thank you for another post full of insight and wisdom. I am still praying daily for you and your family. You remain a blessing to my family. If ever there is anything we can do for you, let us know. -Tim
ReplyDeleteTo His glory that we serve a sovereign God! Thank you for your transparentness and godliness you continue to share.
ReplyDeleteSarah, I was just reading on that exact thing... funny how God does that. It has always been hard for me to hear that- hear that God did allow our suffering or even had a part of it. But once again my small human mind cannot even begin to see the whole picture and understand the wisdom of God. I am praying for you...and so inspired by your strength and perception. Amy
ReplyDeleteThe human condition is not without it's pain and suffering. God just made me that way...like no other beings...the power of choice in this sinful world is a gift and curse. The gift is that I CAN choose Him, the curse is that I have to choose in the 1st place, and I often choose wrong. I'm more with your friend on this. My God doesn't desire suffering to teach me, but he uses it as I choose to place myself in any situation that I may suffer, and that's almost every situation. It appears I choose pain as my teacher. My life could turn "crazy" too and I would feel the full gammit of feelings and yes God would USE my suffering to heal the wounds...he is so wonderful that way. It sounds like you are experiencing it right now. I recognize because I KNOW. Often for me, I overthink it and want to label it with an explanation. This really just adds to my obsession of trying to figure out God. Some crappy things just can't be explained...and He's cool with that, even when sometimes I'm not.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for opening your heart and sharing YOUR truth with me...it helps me, by learning from others, to open my box that I often trap God in, and let Him out...'cause He's HUGE!!
Peace, Acceptance, and Joy to you and your family.
Thank you for being honest in you comment Jeff. Interesting thing is that we did not choose this suffering - nor is it a direct result of our sin. In fact, we did nothing at all to cause the suffering we are going through - Unless you include choosing to accept a referral for adoption. But, when we did that it was certainly not so that we could somehow choose this painful experience. We accepted our referral after much prayer and seeking the Lord - We did choose Him first, and we still do not believe that we made a wrong choice.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with you that some things just cannot be explained. That is basically what we are left with in our situation. We are not expecting to know, on this side of heaven, why the Lord would so clearly guide us down this path that would end with so much suffering. But, it is comforting to know that not only is our God good, but like you said, He is HUGE! And He is powerful enough to be in control ALL the time and over everything.
Sarah
Couldn't agree more with your perspective and it is so refreshing to hear a believer so grounded in the truth! We will be praying for your children and your family!
ReplyDelete