Who's in Charge of a World That Suffers? a Billy Graham DevotionalSýnishorn

The Reality of Suffering

Suffering is difficult to talk or write about, for it is not something that can adequately be examined outside the realm of experience. It is not abstract, nor is it philosophical. It is real and concrete. It leaves its scars. When the winds of adversity have passed, we are seldom unchanged. It is only when one has passed through a crisis event that one can truly comprehend what it means to suffer. And often it is only in retrospect that we realize the purpose and value of our suffering. 

Struggles in life can uncover untold depths of character and unknown strength for service. People who go through life unscathed by sorrow and untouched by pain tend to be shallow in their perspective on life. Suffering, on the other hand, tends to plow up the surface of our lives to uncover the depths that provide greater strength of purpose and accomplishment. Only deeply plowed earth can yield bountiful harvests. 

Pain has many faces. One can suffer physically, mentally, emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually. Our difficulties are rarely confined to only one of these areas; they tend to overlap in human experiences. Some of the most intensive suffering can be psychologically induced and frequently lead to complications in the physical realm. 

There are as many invisible hurts as there are visible hurts, and there can be difficulty in diagnosing them. We know that the unseen part of man is often the victim of the most debilitating of pains. In certain circumstances, a man can endure excruciating physical pain; and yet he can be felled by one unkind word. When we hear the story of the torture inflicted upon a P.O.W., we are astounded by his personal fortitude and the resiliency of the human body. But that same man’s life can be devastated by a single viciously perpetrated act or word. 

Scripture has much to say about the power of the tongue to inflict cruelty. The psalmist says that bitter words are like deadly arrows. James wrote: “The tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body” (James 3:5, 6). 

Man is capable of great victories and susceptible to great defeats. Man is both strong and sensitive. As the psalmist exclaimed, “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made” (Ps. 139:14). 

In earnest we must endeavor to apply this sensitivity when dealing with the matter of suffering, especially as we consider the sufferings of others. We cannot feel someone else’s pain. We can see the anguish in his face and try to empathize. But we do not have his nerve endings. We cannot fully know the magnitude of his anguish. We must never minimize the suffering of another. Scripture’s mandate to us is, ‘‘Weep with them that weep” (Rom. 12:15, kjv).

Our physical sufferings express a great truth. As C. S. Lewis cogently penned, “Pain . . . plants the flag of truth within the fortress of a rebel soul.”1 The truth is this—man’s body is mortal, temporal. Man must look beyond himself to find immortality. 

Suffering is one of God’s ways of speaking to us, of awakening us to our need of Him, and calling us to Himself. To quote C. S. Lewis again: “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”2 If our suffering leads us to God, it has become a blessed and precious friend. 

We are indebted to modern medical science for the tremendous strides made in finding cures for so many diseases and harnessing others. And yet pain is still with us. Many of you know the reality of cancer, strokes, heart attacks, birth defects, auto injuries. Many of you have been bedridden and racked with pain for years. Some of you are shocked by the discovery of a friend’s or relative’s terminal illness. Maybe you yourself are facing the prospect of death. Let me assure you that you do not need to face your situation alone. God wants to comfort and help you. 

Some suffering comes as a natural result of the deterioration of the body. Some forms of physical suffering are inflicted upon us by others. 

There may come a day when we Americans will undergo intense persecution for our faith. Are you prepared to face martyrdom? Jesus gave His life for you. You may be called to give your life for Him. God has many precious promises for those who suffer for Christ. 

Respond

What might a "bountiful harvest" as a result of suffering look like?

How have you seen God's work manifest itself in your life during or following times of deep suffering? 

What is meant by "The tongue is also a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body" (as described in James 3:5,6)? How does this impact the way you relate to others who are suffering?

How do the promises of God set forth in Scripture impact how you relate to God while walking through hard times?