Overcoming SufferingSample

Suffering Will End

Did you know that every suffering you experience has a shelf life?

It has an expiry date. Not a single suffering is eternal for the man who has surrendered his life to Jesus.

Now, there may be suffering that lasts a long time. I have experienced that. I started to struggle with some mental health issues back in 1999, and I still struggle with them today. God has been gracious and kind to me through it all, but He hasn’t taken those struggles away.

It is easy to get overwhelmed and exhausted with long-term suffering. Maybe you’ve prayed for healing, and healing never came. You asked God for relief, and yet you are still in the storm.

Brothers, we need to remember that one day, all this suffering will come to an end.

I like to imagine what that day will be like.

Maybe I will be standing on the threshold of Heaven, one foot in eternity, and one foot still leaving this present, mortal life. I wonder if I will get a chance to glance back over my life in that moment.

I will see all the pain and the struggle of however many years I was able to live.

And then I will turn the other way and see an eternity of pain-free, tear-free, sorrow-free existence. Never again will there be any suffering or struggle (Revelation 21:1-8).

I will get to compare an eternity of bliss with this short life of suffering.

And I wonder if I will say, “If I have nothing but paradise ahead of me forever and ever, I could have experienced more suffering in my mortal life. And I definitely could have gone through my suffering with a better attitude and mindset.”

If we only think in terms of our time here on earth, our suffering can loom very large.

But if we remember that we are eternal beings, saved by Jesus, and destined for Heaven, our current suffering gets right-sized and much more manageable.

Prayer: Dear Lord, help me to remember that I am an eternal being and that because of Your suffering on the cross, I have the hope of eternal life with You. There will be no more pain, or sorrow, or sadness, or death; You will take all of that away. Help me to remember, therefore, that most of my existence will be pain-free and that only a very small portion, my life on this earth, will have suffering. Help me to endure suffering with more joy and peace. Amen.

Reflection: Are you seeing your life from an eternity mindset, or are you just thinking about this life as if this earthly time were all there is? It is not easy to remember eternity, but by God’s grace, when you can do it, you will find extraordinary strength to carry on.