Thursday, April 16, 2009

Suffering, Who Needs It?

Let me be very honest. I don't like suffering. Not in any of its various forms - illness, persecution, or pain. I don't like sickness (I'm not a quiet patient - just ask my wife). Or suffering for making poor decisions. And I certainly don't like suffering of any kind that involves pain. Why is this, you ask? The answer is selfishly simple: I am a person who struggles with being in control. I know it's sinful, but it is true. I love "ordering my day" around those things that I want to accomplish, and when suffering (in any form) bumps into my neat schedule and disrupts it I can get _______________. (You fill in the blank)

Suffering reminds me that I am not in control. Suffering has a way of smashing my "I'm in control" illusion like nothing else can. How do we correctly respond to suffering - regardless of how it arrives? What is a biblical perspective for suffering? And how can we prepare ourselves in advance for suffering?

We'll answer these questions this Sunday as we continue our 1 Peter study. We're back in chapter 3, verses 13-22. See you Sunday!

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