Necessity of Suffering
Jan 30, 2017
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READ: Psalm 105:17-43
He brought His people out of Egypt with joy, His chosen ones with rejoicing (Psalm 105:43).
A chrysalis was hanging from a branch.
Inside, a butterfly seemed to be struggling. Curious to witness its
emergence, an observer waited. Time passed, however, and the insect was still
trapped in its self-made prison. So the person made a small tear in the
chrysalis—hoping to relieve the butterfly’s struggle and suffering. It soon
died, for the struggle to be free is essential to making a butterfly strong
enough to survive. Without adversity, it won’t achieve maturity.
When we first read Psalm 105, it appears to be a joyful
account of praise and worship, remembering all the things God had done for
His people Israel. And it is!
But if we look closer, we see that the events described were neither fun nor
happy—quite the contrary. Joseph, used by God to deliver Israel, was first
sold into slavery and dragged off in chains (Psalm 105:17-18). God’s chosen people were
later mistreated and enslaved in Egypt (Psalm 105:25).
It couldn’t have been easy for the
Israelites to see all the plagues of Egypt erupt around them while the
Egyptians’ hate turned white hot against them (Psalm 105:28-38). Even the accounts of
Moses striking a rock to produce water and the arrival of quail in the desert
were times of intense trial and stress for God’s people (Psalm 105:40-41). Whole
families—exhausted, thirsty, hungry—wandered in a foreign desert.
This is the way God works: providing in the
midst of our suffering in order to develop and mature us. By doing so, He
brings honor to His name and leads us to worship Him for who He is, not
simply because life is going well. Struggles present opportunities to praise
Him even as our faith is being tested. And His power provides what we need
during our times of necessary
suffering. —Russell Fralick
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for
today: Genesis
49:1-33
NEXT: Can
you ask God to make you thankful for your current challenges? What has He
taught you through past trials to equip you to help others as they struggle
today?
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