Over the last few Sundays we’ve been going through a series of sermons we’ve called, “Faith In The Face Of Suffering”. Someone said that a faith that only works when things are going good and doesn’t help us when times are bad is not worth holding on to. So we’ve been exploring a faith in God that helps us “suffer well” and found that it looks like Jesus. We’ve seen that when our trust in God allows us to respond to adversity like Jesus would or when we allow it to make us more like him, it can be said that we’re suffering well.

Suffering can be an isolating and lonely experience. And it’s easy to make the mistake of facing it alone. But this coming Sunday our final talk is going to be on how suffering well means suffering together as a believing community. You won’t want to miss this one. I think it’s going to be really helpful.

Suffering well as worship?

The topic of faith in the face of suffering is a big one and we’ve only been able to scratch the surface. Hopefully it’s given you a broader more hopeful perspective that will serve you well the next time you face tough times (by the way if you’ve missed any of the talks they’re on our website). But I had one more quick thought that I wanted to share with you on the subject… the idea that suffering well is worship. It goes like this…

Ultimately suffering well is a matter of surrendering ourselves and our painful situation to God.  It means offering ourselves to God as ‘living sacrifices’. Being willing to entrust ourselves to his will, oversight and care. This kind of surrender is the very essence of worship. When we respond to suffering his way rather than our way; when we depend on his grace rather than on our own strength to eliminate it or endure it, it becomes true worship.

I bet few of you have ever thought of suffering well as worship but it is. By responding in a worshipful way, suffering becomes a pathway to  experiencing God’s grace in deeper more meaningful ways as well as providing a means of becoming more like Jesus Christ himself. Worship is a lifestyle of surrender and service to God. When we put our lives at his disposal, even suffering and pain can become opportunities for God to bring his kingdom to us and to those around us.

See you Sunday,
Mike T

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