TEMPTATION Vs. SUFFERING

What's the difference between suffering and temptation?

Does God really promise that He will not give us more than we can handle?

What is the purpose of suffering and temptation?

How does it benefit us?

How should we handle temptation? Find out here! Okay, honestly, I have NO idea how to start a podcast (or a blog), so welcome to the unscripted faith podcast - the place for Christian women to explore Biblical insights,

Godly advice

and instruction to get through these crazy times we’re living in.

I’m your host, Jessie T and this is going to be awkward for me because it’s my VERY first podcast and I have no idea if I’m talking to myself …or not! I write just like I talk, disregarding all grammar, paragraphing rules, etc. - this is essentially my podcast notes put into some form of blog worthy writing for those of you who would rather not listen. If you're a self-proclaimed "grammar Nazi", you might drive yourself a little less crazy if you just listen to my podcast instead of reading these notes. Anyway, one thing I can’t stand is small talk,

so let’s cut straight to the chase and dig into today’s topic: Suffering. Yeah, I know we hate to think about suffering- it’s definitely NOT what normal people would pray FOR…… BUT……..there are some very valuable insights to glean about suffering, and some things we need to clear up before we can dig into those, so let’s get started

One of the most MISquoted or MISunderstood Bible passages of all time is found in 1st Corinthians 10:13,

which most people confuse with the idea that God will NOT give you more than you can handle, ……but that’s NOT what this verse is talking about at all.

Here’s what the verse ACTUALLY says, “God is faithful, and he will not let you be TEMPTED beyond your ability, but WITH the temptation

he will also PROVIDE THE WAY OF ESCAPE,

So that you may be able to endure it (1 Corinthians 10:13).”

I want to clarify the MEANING of this verse before we dive into suffering because it’s SO important that we do not confuse what is being said here, or what TOOLS he uses to accomplish his goals.

This verse is talking about TEMPTATION.

So, think of DESIRING something that GOD has already said is a SIN….

things like desiring someone ELSE’S husband

Desiring someone of the same GENDER,

being tempted to drink ALCOHOL to excess…. and become drunk,

Feeling tempted to LIE about something, someone or a SITUATION in order to fit in or avoid trouble…. THESE are temptations….things that lead to sin.

It is NOT talking about the idea of wiping all hardships, and struggles, pain and persecution from our lives. In fact, if that were the case, that would be contradictory to what the Bible ACTUALLY says about what our lives here on earth will be like as born again believers.

The GOOD news is, even if I just shattered or challenged everything you’ve believed about that verse and now you’re feeling hopeless- FEAR NOT!

- the verse is STILL beautiful because it is saying that EVEN THOUGH we WILL be tempted, God will ALSO provide a way out of that sin.

What do YOU struggle with?

Let’s say your BIGGEST temptation is ALCOHOL and you’re a mom of a special needs child who has just come home from one of those wretched end of year IEP meetings and found out how USELESS and unproductive the staff and administration thinks your child is.

They have just laid out for you in NO UNCERTAIN TERMS that your baby will never amount to anything and THAT really only made you realize how much you are FAILING them as a mother. You feel terrible. Worthless. Desperate. Hopeless

And perhaps even guilty. In your emotional torment, you just want to CRY yourself to sleep….

… BUT you’ve gotta be available to your child in case they start having BEHAVIORAL issues and hurt their other siblings. You need emotional support or SOME way to just get through these next couple of hours until Your husband comes home.

There’s wine in the cupboard from the most recent holiday….it shouldn’t even be there in the first place because it wasn’t even yours in the first place…

Your aunt Becky brought it over the other night…. you’re a recovering alcoholic

AND you’re a Christian and what would your FRIENDS think if they saw that sitting on the counter? YOU KNOW the Bible says not to drink to excess….

….but feel like you’ve been through an emotional boxing match with a heavyweight champion and had your butt kicked… the ALTERNATIVE is going to bed early

(which your kids will simply NOT allow unless you completely neglect their needs).

Plus, your husband won’t be very happy if he gets home and there’s no dinner made after the long day he’s had. What’s it going to hurt if you have just a glass of wine, anyway,

as long as you don't get to the point where you FEEL you’re out of control? Doesn’t the Bible say not to be DRUNK with wine? I mean, you’re not PLANNING to get drunk- you just want something to take the edge off this horrible day-

You know, something to relax you and turn you back into the fun mom again… I mean, ONE drink won’t make you an alcoholic, right? So you look around. The kids are playing nicely outside…. You reach for a long stem glass,

Pour yourself a little, and give the glass a swirl and a sniff

The Bible is CLEAR that DRUNKENNESS is a SIN

and there you are STRUGGLING with this idea,

trying to JUSTIFY all the reasons why just a glass or two might not be such a BIG deal. You feel that conviction…..and then you feel it wane when that “voice of reason” kicks in reminding you that one glass won’t be enough to do you in. So….you bring the glass to your lips, ready to take a sip of that SWEET saving grace… And……

the phone rings. Startled,

You answer the call without even looking to see who it is….. It’s your husband,

who knows that TODAY is your 10 year sobriety anniversary

and he’s calling to CONGRATULATE you

and see if you’d like to do dinner at your favorite restaurant tonight.

What just happened? Were you CAUGHT?

Or was God providing you an ESCAPE from your temptation? When God provides us with an OUT- It’s up to US to TAKE IT…. Otherwise we WILL cave in to the temptation And temptation never leads us toward righteousness. See Satan is a cunning adversary He only ever tempts us with the things we TRULY want in our flesh,

That will ultimately cause us to break one of God’s commands,

And if we’re living with the Holy Spirit inside us,

Then that THING that we just succumbed to will become a point of CONVICTION for us…. And Satan will then mock and taunt us for disobeying or disrespecting God or His laws!! That’s Temptation- it’s anything that we DESIRE to do That we GIVE IN TO to satisfy ourselves That GOD has already said “no” to And God promises that WHEN you experience that temptation, HE will PROVIDE you with an OUT! So you don’t have to sin,

And so that God won’t be able to mock you when you fail

SUFFERING is entirely different. You’ll be HARD PRESSED to find a SINGLE verse in the Bible that says something like,

“Come unto me, all you who are burdened and heavy laden and I will give you EVERYTHING you want, Make you SUPER happy, and NEVER let you suffer.” That promise just DOES NOT on this earth. THAT promise exists in the FUTURE

And it awaits those of us who are born AGAIN And are faithful to the Lord, trying to do what is right according to God Almighty. And even then, we don’t necessarily get what WE want Our needs and desires become conformed to the mind of Christ-

therefore ,

We ONLY want what GOD wants…and THEN those needs/desires are met by God Himself… Not by anything our flesh desires because our flesh will finally be conquered.

The verse that I just butchered on purpose to make a point says,

“Come to me all you who are burdened and heavy laden and I will give you REST….”

And THAT verse seems best suited for a couple of applications, but since we females are quite EMOTIONAL, let’s go THERE and see what the context might be.

Why would we NEED rest? Or better yet… From WHAT would we be needing rest?

Is THIS verse promising us a life of ease,

Free of burdens,

Pain and suffering?

No. Neither the verses before or after it seem to indicate this at all

This verse, in an emotional sense, seems best suited to say,

“Bring your burden to me and I will SHARE it with you. I will WALK with you THROUGH the struggle you’re facing

so you won’t be ALONE

and so that the burden will not FEEL quite as heavy as if you were carrying it entirely alone” The Bible does NOT say “Come to me all who are burdened and I will carry it FOR you.”

And there are good reasons for that which we’ll untangle in a little bit.

The Bible is clear that we WILL face persecution and hardship.

1 Peter 5:10 says, “And the God of all grace, who CALLED you to his eternal glory in Christ, AFTER YOU HAVE SUFFERED A LITTLE WHILE, will HIMSELF restore you and make you STRONG, FIRM and steadfast. Notice it says “AFTER YOU HAVE SUFFERED…..THEN he will restore you…” Also notice that it says “He Himself will restore you AND MAKE YOU STRONG…firm and steadfast:

How many times have we heard people say something like,

“Yeah, I’m struggling but I’m strong, I’ll get through it…” I love this little nugget because I don’t know about you

but it tells me we don’t HAVE to PRETEND to be strong. In fact, we ARE NOT strong…we are WEAK…that’s why we give in to sin and temptation…. We don’t GET strong…….until HE makes us strong, but it’s not really US that He makes strong in my experience,

It’s that he TEACHES me to rely upon HIS strength

INSTEAD of my own!

Until then, we are weak-

and that’s okay….there’s a beauty in this idea of weakness that few really like to talk about, but WE will by the time we get to the end of this talk today.

But I want to keep showing you Bible verses that prove that suffering IS our lot in this life so that we are not disillusioned.

2 Timothy 3:12 says, “ In FACT, EVERYONE who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus

WILL BE PERSECUTED” This word, “PERSECUTED” Refers to a SPECIAL type of hardship that comes from being harassed, mocked, discriminated against, or otherwise treated poorly BECAUSE of our faith in God.

Wanna know if you’re living a life that pleases God?

How much persecution are you suffering because you’re a Christ follower?

It’s funny- I used to wear my lack of persecution in my heart like a secret badge of honor…. Like somehow I had figured out how to love Jesus JUST enough that SOME people might possibly GUESS that I’m a Christian, but NOT enough to cause problems for myself. If that sounds like your thought process, I want to speak to you right now and tell you- you’re WRONG and it’s NOT honoring to the Lord. There is NO glory and there is NO witness in “just bumping along, HOPING people will figure out you’re a Christian” and MAYBE even thinking you’re COOL…… What you are is a LUKEWARM Christian- and you know what God thinks about that? He HATES it!!! look it up in Revelation 3:15…..God is CLEAR about what He thinks about this behavior and if you’re like I was for so long, you better switch it up a little bit and choose THIS DAY whom you will serve because the days are getting shorter, my friend. Time is running out. You CANNOT Serve both God and the world. God DIED dramatically for YOU. Can you not LIVE radically for Him?

Isaiah 43:12 is one of my FAVORITE verses about suffering.

He says, “WHEN you pass through deep waters, I will be with you” There are a lot of other verses on suffering but the point is,

if YOU are a Christian……..If YOU have decided to follow Jesus,

and I would add, if you’re doing it in a way that PLEASES GOD-

then YOU WILL face persecution and you WILL have hard times. And this is NOT a bad thing

because we should NOT fear the wilderness or struggles in this life. They’re there to SHAPE us and MOLD us- and yes, it HURTS to go through pain and trials But friend, it is so BEAUTIFUL when you LEARN just how PERFECT and COMPLETE God IS for you…..How much he LOVES you……..how MERCIFUL, GRACIOUS, and GOOD He is……How wise, tenderhearted, and PROTECTIVE He is…. I am CONVINCED that it is ONLY then, that you will truly serve the Lord willingly, forsaking this idea that you must somehow appease the world to a certain degree, or even be perceived as “Cool” just so people might somehow be attracted to the idea of following Christ. No….People will know you’re a Christian your resolve and steadfastness in SERVING and GLORIFYING Him _—----- NO —-MATTER—--WHAT — comes your way………THEN and ONLY then will they know….

But back to the idea of not loathing the wilderness in our seasons of life….

TOO often, we VILANIZE the idea of struggles. In my own life, I have PRAYED for ease and comfort like most of you probably have.

But what am I actually DOING by asking God for this? Am I praying in the will of God, if I’m asking Him for something that He CLEARLY states in his Word WILL happen just the OPPOSITE of what I’m praying- to those of us who are living like bold believers? Did you know that it isn’t always our SIN that leads us to the wilderness? Sometimes GOD, or the Holy Spirit leads us to the desert and wilderness places. So should we really be despising the trials in our life? Or should we be looking for a GREATER purpose as much as possible? I’m not suggesting you separate your humanity from your good senses- I’m not even sure that’s possible. Trials cause PAIN…..and PAIN causes tears, anger, confusion and all sorts of other things. Women were made more sensitive to emotions than men (generally speaking). It would be impossible for us not to FEEL during these trials and times of desperation…. But during trials and hardship, we also have moments of CLARITY…. And THOSE are the times to seek God’s purpose. What is he TEACHING us? How is he GROWING us? WHO is He really REACHING during these things? All of that sounds great…but inevitably when we suffer, we always call out to God, just like Job did and why say, “WHyyyy? Whyy meee??!!!” SO…… why WOULD God lead us to the desert places where we hunger and thirst for justice, righteousness and relief?

To SUFFER?

Does He think it’s FUNNY? Is this some kind of sick joke?

Matthew 4:1 states, “Then Jesus was LED up by the SPIRIT into the wilderness …….to be tempted by the devil.”

The “fruit” that I want us to extract from this verse

is that Jesus was led NOT by Satan,

but by the SPIRIT- into the wilderness. It is important to note that Jesus (aka the perfect, SINLESS God-man),

who is the example that WE must try to imitate-

did not go to the mountain, the garden, the cross or the wilderness kicking and screaming- NOT ONCE! This verse tells us he was LED. And that implies that even though Jesus surely KNEW (because he was God) what would take place,

He went WILLINGLY…. I’m not saying he was HAPPY about it. From reading this passage, we see Jesus had deprived himself of food and water in order to be PREPARED for this spiritual battle with Satan that He was about to face. and this was IMPORTANT because FASTING FORCES us to lay aside our literal fleshly desires

and rely FULLY on God for EVERYTHING…..including our very sustenance. Some people who fast regularly say that the result of fasting

is that it gets our feelings and thoughts in check

and more in line with Scripture AND it helps us to spiritually be CLOSER to God. These two points are important in this story

because Jesus,

although both fully God and fully man,

was SEPARATED from Himself in terms of his deity,

And KNOWING that He would be tempted, Jesus SHOWS US what to do WHEN temptation strikes: - Subdue emotions or fleshly desires - and Get closer with the Lord Essentially we’re talking about wearing the FULL armor of God, here. And when we do that,

we KNOW that the purpose of the full armor of God

is to help us to STAND when we face the wiles of the devil. So by the time Satan comes to tempt Jesus,

he had already POSITIONED Himself in as close of a place with God as he could POSSIBLY be and this,

I think,

is a GREAT picture for US to think about

in terms of (referencing back to Isaiah) where he says “WHEN you go through deep waters, I WILL be with you.”

We KNOW that God never leaves us,

but that doesn’t always mean that we always FEEL his presence. And so THAT begs the question……. What if we’re going through a trial and we DON’T feel His presence???? What does THAT mean? God tells us in the Bible HOW to be close to him

but it is up to US to do the things we MUST

in order to MAINTAIN close fellowship with him.

If we’re NOT doing those things CONSISTENTLY

(the things that dress us in the full armor of God) We are more LIKELY to feel distant from the Lord.

Like a parent is always watching over their young child on the playground as they test their boundaries and climb higher and higher

(thereby increasing their risk of injury),

the GOOD parent is there close by

either holding their child's HAND

or standing with arms WIDE open to catch them in case they fall,

but if the child’s WILL and DESIRE is SOOO strong that,

despite the parent’s warning,

they climb TOO far …………..or TOO high,

they may suddenly look around and REALIZE they can no longer SEE their parent

and they become AFRAID, thinking that their parent has LEFT them. That’s kind of how we are with God, isn’t it? We slowly compromise this Bible study time for that shopping trip

We stop going to church for a few weeks because we’ve worked hard and we’re tired We stop praising the Lord as much because we’re just so stressed out- what IS there to praise Him for anyway? Slowly but surely, we’re walking down a path that looks NOTHING like following Jesus,

And a LOT more like following the world.

Jesus KNEW not to stray far from the Father,

so ALTHOUGH he was both FULLY God and FULLY human in this story,

he KNEW that to REMAIN spiritually CLOSE

he needed to DEPRIVE his FLESH of something it RELIED on just as much as God

in order to rely WHOLLY on God instead……and , so he fasted.

Denying himself of the NEEDS of the flesh

allowed JESUS to be SPIRITUALLY primed and READY

to face the TEMPTATIONS of the devil.

Do you know what the FIRST temptation was that Satan offered Jesus? It was FOOD!

After fasting for FORTY days,

don’t you think Jesus was HUNGRY? Can you imagine what went through our Savior’s mind when Satan tempted him to turn the stones to BREAD? I’m SURE in his human brain the thought crossed his MIND

that it COULD be a good idea

to turn those stones into BREAD so he could EAT it

…but he DID NOT take Satan up on the offer! I’m not sure I could’ve been that strong. Ya know….Jesus COULD’VE just said, “No.” When Satan asked, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” But that’s not what he did! Saying “no” would’ve been SIMPLE but instead of leaving it at “no”....Jesus QUOTED scripture to Satan to REBUT his attacks on his flesh! And this is a second lesson to us to pull from this study today- The first was that Jesus DEPRIVED His flesh of something he NEEDED to survive The second thing is that He countered Satans temptation…..with SCRIPTURE…..

You say, “Well, I don’t know many Scriptures.

I’ve tried and just can’t memorize any Scripture.” I was one of those people who sang that phrase out every time someone recommended to me that I should be memorizing Scripture. I thought I was INCAPABLE of memorizing anything other than song lyrics (which- as a side note, IS a good way to memorize Scripture BUT….I’ve yet to even listen to a hundred songs that cover every single verse of the Bible…). If memorizing Scriptures by listening to the radio station is your way of doing it- That’s fine, I guess… But it’s like going to fix a broken down farm tractor with a chainsaw and a can of gasoline. In other words, you’re LIMITING the TOOLS (aka amount of SCRIPTURE) you KNOW…..because you’re only relying on the worship leaders on the radio to teach it to you. It’s just going to leave you ill equipped for spiritual battle when you need it.

So if you think memorizing scripture is BEYOND You for some reason- You’re wrong…..and maybe you’re simply like I was for so long…….

LAZY…… about Scripture memorization. I know- that doesn’t SOUND very nice,

but THIS is how I needed to be spoken to for a long time

and no one really had the GUTS to speak up to me about it

or even tell me the IMPORTANCE of memorizing Scripture…..

and I don't’ want to be GUILTY of the same thing,

so if YOU’RE listening to me right now

EVEN if it rubs you the wrong way to hear what I’m saying- Maybe there’s a CHANCE that GOD wanted YOU to hear this podcast

so you could hear that MAYBE you need to dump ALL the excuses about Scripture memorization

and stop being LAZY

and just GET TO IT! The truth was, I didn’t CARE to memorize scripture for like….20 years. I didn't see VALUE in it

and I didn’t feel like MAKING the time to do it. We ARE capable of memorizing Scriptures

And we NEED to stop parroting the LIE that we “Just can’t” do it…. Satan is having a FIELD Day with his minions CONVINCING us that we’re all too dumb to be able to remember any Scripture. Let me give it to you straight- even SATAN and the DEMONS know the Scriptures better than WE do. It’s true that they are angels- — ONCE angels from the realms of glory…they are now FALLEN angels- and they STILL know Scripture. So EVEN if you’re a backslidden Christian… EVEN if you’re not walking in the faith right now If the DEMONS can know Scripture SO CAN YOU For Heavens sake- WE humans are made just a LITTLE lower than the angels But not only THAT We are made IN THE IMAGE of God. If we are the REFLECTION of God- Shouldn’t WE be FULLY capable of memorizing Scriptures with a little bit of effort?

I mean, since Jesus kinda DID come to earth as a human being just like us, and PROVED that HE could memorize Scripture….. And by the way- He didn’t have Google He didn’t have a radio station singing Bible verses… He didn’t even have a book. In fact, for generations- NOBODY had a book!!!!! The children for generations before us in our ancestry Had to METICULOUSLY memorize Scriptures that were PASSED DOWN from one generation to the next until EVENTUALLY It was written down. So really,

we have NO excuse not to at least TRY to memorize SOME Scripture. And if you’re like ME… You might not always be able to quote the exact book and chapter the verse comes from…. You might even MIX IT UP a little bit ………or stutter over your words…or mix a couple of scriptures together like a word mash… God’s not asking for PERFECTION- in fact, it’s not even a REQUIREMENT to get into Heaven that you memorize Scripture… But it IS a requirement for good, strong Spiritual BATTLE if you don’t want to tossed around like a rag doll….and as we just established- you WILL find yourself in battle in the physical AND Spiritual realms….so you might as well suit up because Scripture Memorization is a KEY aspect to the armor of God Scripture helps us DISCERN what IS

or is NOT from God,

It is POWERFUL, ALIVE

And sharper than any two- edged sword. Scripture is the FOUNDATION of our greatest WEAPONS … And that is WORSHIP!!! And PRAYER!!

Life is hard enough- why make it HARDER by going through this life-

Which is a constant spiritual battle,

WITHOUT the proper tools?!

As Christians, we KNOW that we are SUPPOSED to be growing MORE like Jesus,

a VERY tall order because BOY,

that flesh is a STRONG opponent.

BUT…hear me out. According to Hebrews 2:17, Jesus SUFFERED temptation so that he would be made FULLY like us

(that is, having EVERY basic human experience) so that He could RELATE to us when we cry out to Him, And by the same token- WE can relate to HIM when we read about what He SUFFERED And how he DIED for us and WHY He did it! AND so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to GOD

SO THAT

He could MAKE that precious atonement for our sins and CRUSH them under the weight of the cross that he was crucified on! DON’T MISS the importance of SUFFERING, my friend. It stinks- but it’s the one of the most horribly beautiful blessings we have to be about to identify with Christ or Lord and Savior!

we might even say

that Jesus was put through every basic human experience possible

SO that

he could say He TRULY understands our struggles….

SO THAT….he could make a connection in his human mind between US and Him that it is TEMPTATION that leads us to sin ………every time,

After experiencing this temptation HIMSELF He would then be able to FULLY and COMPLETELY obliterate sin

by overcoming it both HERE on earth while he was ALIVE

AND then once and for ALL

when he made that atonement

on the cross for our sins. That’s pretty amazing. But it doesn’t stop there!!!

Picture this-

Jesus gets put through the ringer of human existence

in ORDER to IDENTIFY with us (WILLINGLY- by the way- He COULD’VE said No!)

so that his SACRIFICE is not merely fully UNDERSTOOD by him

but his sacrifice is COMPLETE (in that every sin

that we would EVER commit

STEMS directly from some kind or form of temptation that HE faced!!!)

....but then WE,

in turn,

are supposed to learn to overcome temptation

and USE Jesus’ EXAMPLE

to do it

in order for US

to become more like HIM! So first, God makes an effort to be like us And now we should try to make an effort to be like HIM.

(not in a self righteous, holier than thou sort of way- That’s a whole different thing for another time)

But rather, as a PREPARATION for heaven and for being able to bring GLORY to the name of God when we TAKE that escape from temptation

And avoid sin just like JESUS did.

Now, what ELSE is interesting

is that when Jesus was finished being tempted,

the ANGELS came and MINISTERED to him.

Did you know that we, too, are ministered to by the angels?

The same care that Jesus received after temptation

is available to us as well. Hebrews 1:14 says that angels are MINISTERING SPIRITS who SERVE those of us who will INHERIT salvation. Now, that’s NOT to say that we should worship angels-

that’s not right at all.

We BELONG to and worship Jesus, God the Father and the Holy Spirit- the Holy Trinity- but we do not worship CREATED BEINGS or CREATION-

That would be a whole different false religion and we don’t want to go there.

The point here is that,

we have access to the COMFORT of angels

JUST like Jesus did after his historic temptation by Satan in the wilderness.

Okay, that all sounds awesome,

but what is the POINT of all of this suffering?

Is the point of it all just so that we can COMPARE our battle scars and stories with Jesus

who was obviously WAY more equipped to handle the battle than we'll ever be?

Or is there some other meaning?

I have lived a very storied life

and at some point soon

I might get into one such story that led me to want to make this topic the first podcast I ever created,

but that’s for a different day…. here are a few reasons God allows us to suffer. As a disclaimer: I will admit that if you’re a new Christian,

or a weak Christian,

these reasons might not feel very exciting or good to you.

But for the SEASONED Christian, they can bring some comfort.

One reason for suffering is to turn our gaze toward heaven

and stop looking around us or to this world to fix the problems we see or experience. I mean,

what’s the first thing you do when things start going the wrong way?

After the shock wears off,

if you’re like most people

you start asking God WHY

or you start longing for heaven when it gets bad enough.

Another reason we suffer is to learn to have SYMPATHY for OTHER people.

it’s difficult to MINISTER to someone who is going through something that we haven’t YET suffered OURSELVES-

That’s precisely WHY Jesus allowed himself to be LED of the Spirit to be tempted by Satan, as we’ve already established.

We might also suffer because God wants to TEACH us something

that ultimately causes us to REFLECT God,

Or communicate his MESSAGE

or his LOVE better to other people

Suffering CHANGES people.

It can change us for the BETTER

or for the worse.

I know people in my life who have suffered GREAT hardships and losses.

Some people suffer and get BITTER at God.

Some people suffer and it brings them a greater UNDERSTANDING about the Lord

and helps us to grow STRONGER in our faith. Exactly which path WE choose-

to suffer horribly or to suffer graciously-

depends ENTIRELY on US And how we decide to THINK about it. (again, we’re not talking about neglecting feelings, here. We’re talking about those moments of clarity that turn in to TURNING POINTS in our grief, stress and struggles)

I’m not sure if this is theological or not,

but I feel that suffering as a SAINT

DOES lend us to a BETTER outcome in the end mentally and spiritually speaking-

It USUALLY directs our hearts toward loving and TRUSTING God MORE

than it would for someone who doesn’t KNOW the Lord

Or someone who doesn’t believe in God,

Or hates God. but that DOESN’T mean the PAIN is any worse or better for one person or the next. Christians CERTAINLY do NOT get a free pass from suffering- They just work through it differently with the Lord than someone who isn’t saved, or who is antagonistic toward God.

In my OWN life, I have suffered a lot. I have been saved for over 20 years. I’ve walked the walk,

talked the talk and got the t-shirt, so to speak. I was a “church person” but not a TRANSFORMED person… It took a LONG time for God to mold me into who I am today.

But NOTHING taught me more about the mercy, grace, love, wisdom and care of our Heavenly Father

more than SUFFERING did.

I am at the point NOW where,

although I do not WELCOME suffering,

I at LEAST know that God will be WITH me through the pain

and how CLOSE I feel to him

depends MOSTLY on how close I keep him. Or that sometimes there are times when God ALLOWS for that feeling of distance… Maybe as a test of faith? Maybe so I can remember what he suffered to save me? Maybe for no reason that I’ll ever understand myself. All I DO know is that had I no longer despise the trial Becuase I KNOW I could never experience such fellowship with the Savior As I can now BECAUSE I’ve struggled. And I think that’s what happened with Jesus, too

In his historic temptation by Satan in the wilderness- He fasted and denied his flesh And received GOD’S strength to overcome those temptations by Satan And of course, the end result, we know

Is that Jesus suffered after that, Was crucified for our sins And NOW has ultimate fellowship with God as He was reunited with His deity and place in the Holy Trinity. And that’s pretty much what will happen to US as well… Once we have suffered a little while here on earth, For however long that may be, We will be reunited with Jesus in glory

Where our WILL will be conformed to His,

And our fellowship will be perfect with Him…. And that’s really something to look forward to someday and I can’t wait!

I hope this podcast has helped shed some light on your own life struggles with temptation and suffering. If you have any feedback, questions or topic ideas, I’d love to hear from you at UnscriptedFaithPodcast@gmail.com If you found value in this post and feel led to donate toward the cost of managing this podcast, please feel free to donate any amount to my Square Donation link at https://square.link/u/Q9IHEN61 .

Any donations sourced from this blog or podcast will be used to pay for the fees associated with producing content. Donations will help pay for podcast hosting sites fees, the internet bill, the upgraded equipment, or eventually compensating high quality guests to join the podcast as well.