​Reflection:

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It doesn't seem fair, does it?

Paul spent his life serving Christ, and yet he experienced continual suffering. Why would God let one of His most faithful servants go through so much pain?

This isn't just a question about Paul; it's an issue we face today. In our minds, the Lord should protect His loyal followers from hardships, but He doesn't necessarily do so.

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Maybe our reasoning is backwards.

We think faithful Christians don't deserve to suffer, but from God's perspective, suffering is what produces faithful Christians. If we all had lives of ease without opposition, trials, or pain, we'd never really know God, because we'd never need Him. Like it or not, adversity teaches us more about the Lord than simply reading the Bible ever will.

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I'm not saying we don't need to know Scripture; that's our foundation for faith. But if what we believe is never tested by adversity, it remains head knowledge. How will we ever know the Lord can be trusted in the midst of trouble if we've never been challenged by hardship?

God gives us opportunities to apply scriptural truths to the difficulties facing us, and in the process, we find Him faithful.

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For example, how would Paul ever have known the strength of Christ if he had never been weakened by pain, persecution, and adversity?

Paul had a painful disease and he prayed to God that it depart from him. In 2 Corinthians 12:8-10 Paul says "For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong."

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Prayer: 

Lord, thank You that through adversities and trials l can find strength in You. Thank You, that through these trials, my dependence on You grows and my faith grows. Help me to spend time and my heart with Your Word and direct me to Your will. I pray to You, in Jesus Name, Amen.