Perspective on Suffering
"I could write a book", she said. That was her conclusion to a long list of woes. Inwardly, I was thinking, "And so could I".
Couldn't we all? Isn't life just full of problems? Seems like, if we're lucky, one problem passes before the next one hits - financial strain, wayward children, marital problems, death and disease. The possibilities are endless!
Elizabeth Elliott once defined suffering as not having something you want or having something you don't want. Nicely put.
Isn't it easy to blow things out of proportion, though? Do we sometimes forget that we certainly aren't the only ones with painful circumstances?
Do you know what really sets me straight? Reading about Christians who are persecuted for their faith. Right now I am reading "Clay in the Potter's Hand" by Dorothy Sun. She talks about working in a factory-prison 12 hours a day, six days a week, for starters. Her home was plundered and she was publicly humiliated.
After reading some of these accounts, I feel ashamed that I would even consider myself to be suffering, in comparison.
How about you? Do you need a reality check? Start by reading some accounts of martydom and/or persecution. You will soon see how blessed you really are.
Couldn't we all? Isn't life just full of problems? Seems like, if we're lucky, one problem passes before the next one hits - financial strain, wayward children, marital problems, death and disease. The possibilities are endless!
Elizabeth Elliott once defined suffering as not having something you want or having something you don't want. Nicely put.
Isn't it easy to blow things out of proportion, though? Do we sometimes forget that we certainly aren't the only ones with painful circumstances?
Do you know what really sets me straight? Reading about Christians who are persecuted for their faith. Right now I am reading "Clay in the Potter's Hand" by Dorothy Sun. She talks about working in a factory-prison 12 hours a day, six days a week, for starters. Her home was plundered and she was publicly humiliated.
After reading some of these accounts, I feel ashamed that I would even consider myself to be suffering, in comparison.
How about you? Do you need a reality check? Start by reading some accounts of martydom and/or persecution. You will soon see how blessed you really are.
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