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Suffering’s Limits
Randy
Alcorn
“For
men are not cast off
by the Lord forever.
Though he brings
grief, he will show compassion,
so great is his
unfailing love.
For he does not
willingly bring affliction
or grief to the children
of men.
“To
crush underfoot
all prisoners in the
land,
to deny a man his
rights
before the Most High,
to deprive a man of
justice—
would not the Lord
see such things?
“Who
can speak and have it happen
if the Lord has not
decreed it?
Is it not from the
mouth of the Most High
that both calamities
and good things come?
Why should any living
man complain
when punished for his
sins?
“Let
us examine our ways and test them,
and let us return to
the Lord.” -
Lamentations 3:31–40
In this single passage,
only verses apart, we’re told God doesn’t willingly bring affliction or grief,
and we’re told that both calamities and good things come from God. What can
this mean?
Even though the
statements seem contradictory, they are not.
While God finds no pleasure
in sending affliction or grief to us and He empathizes with our suffering, He
can and does accomplish good purposes in our lives through them.
One reason the
problem of evil and suffering can seem so acute to us is the cumulative weight
we feel from media oversaturation.
At most, people used
to bear the sufferings of their own families, communities, or nations.
Now, through instant
access to global events, we witness the sufferings of an entire world.
This oversaturation
desensitizes some to suffering while overwhelming others.
Despite the horror of
disasters, we must understand that suffering does not have a cumulative nature.
The terrible
suffering of six million people may seem six million times worse than the
suffering of one.
All of us remain
limited to our own suffering.
While our suffering
may include an emotional burden for others who suffer, it cannot grow larger
than we are.
The limits of our
finite beings dictate the limits of our suffering.
C. S.
Lewis concluded, “There is no such thing as a sum of suffering, for no one
suffers it. When we have reached the maximum that a single person can suffer,
we have, no doubt, reached something very horrible, but we have reached all the
suffering there ever can be in the universe. The addition of a million
fellow-sufferers adds no more pain" (The Problem of Pain).
Consider that while
our suffering can rise only to the level we individually can suffer, Jesus
suffered for all of us.
All the evils and
suffering that we tell Him He never should have permitted, He willingly inflicted
upon Himself, for us.
Think about that long
and hard, and let it pierce your heart with wonder and praise.
Lord,
if we understood the extent of your empathy for us and the extent of your
suffering to make us your children, we would surely be embarrassed to express
our displeasure with you when your plans turn out to be radically different
from ours.
While
we tend to live for the pursuit of our happiness, you are committed to the
pursuit of our holiness.
Teach
us that when we pursue only happiness we will lose it along with holiness, but
when we find holiness, including the holiness that can come to us through
difficulties, we will find the happiness of Heaven.
This
blog is excerpted from Randy's devotional 90 Days of God's Goodness.
“This book is truly inspiring! Help for those
going through deep water or who want to encourage others who are.” —Reader
review
Randy
Alcorn,
founder of EPM
Randy
Alcorn (@randyalcorn) is the author of fifty-some books and the founder and
director of Eternal Perspective Ministries.
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