II Timothy 2:3 (NLT) Endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
The Apostle Paul encouraged his mentee, Timothy, to stand strong in the Lord and look for God in times of suffering. “C.S. Lewis gave us that fabulous insight that God whispers to us in our pleasure, but shouts to us in our pain. Everyone suffers some form of pain, physical or psychological.” When we seek God in the middle of pain, we can grow from it rather than be diminished by it. “God takes no pleasure in our pain. But He does delight in our wholeness.” Sometimes we feel pinned down by God in a place we’d rather not be. We feel bloodied and bruised. “The key is to keep looking into His face and talking to Him while the soul surgery takes place.” Pain, disappointment or failure—we all want relief from it; but those who grow to maturity in God ask Him not to take them off the operating table until they learn what He wants to teach them. Look for God in the middle of your trial. Like Paul and David and all the great men and women in our Bible narratives, look to God. “ The cross reminds us that in this world there is no wholeness without some pain.”
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