Recently, I’ve been dwelling on Jesus and His sacrifice for me on the cross. He suffered and died for me so that I would not have to spend Eternity in Hell. He loved you and I that much. His resurrection revealed His great power, and new life. Death had been overcome.

The past few months I have dealt with intense physical suffering. Basically that has been the case for two years, but it has been worse lately. Because of that, my emotions have been all over the place. I have gone through a period of grieving — grieving for things lost and “for what might have been.” As Proverbs 13:12 states, “a hope deferred makes the heart sick,” and that is definitely true in my situation. Years ago, I felt God was calling me into ministry but these circumstances are not what I had in mind. However, this is what God had in mind and He can use any circumstances to glorify Himself. God never promises an easy road, but promises to be with us no matter what comes our way. There is not one person in Scripture who was close to the Lord that did not experience experience suffering. Some examples are Paul, Moses, Abraham, David, and even Jesus Himself.

As I have been reading through the Gospels, the Lord has been reminding me once again of the great depth of Jesus’ suffering and His attitude through it all. Jesus is the model that we need to follow during hard times. Prior to being arrested, Jesus displayed major grief and agony. His suffering was so intense that He sweated blood. However, through all of it, He never lost control or got angry. He never allowed His emotions to affect Him or others in a negative way. His suffering did not cause Him to sin.

In the Garden of Gethsemene Jesus prayed the following prayer, ” And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39). He cried out to the Lord and shared His heart but never complained or had a pity party for Himself. He trusted the Father and wanted His will to be done above all else, even if it meant death on a cross. Jesus believed His Father knew best and surrendered to His will even though He knew what was ahead. Pain and death didn’t deter Him because He loved and trusted in the perfect will of God. Following the arrest when He had the opportunity to fight for Himself and talk back to His captors, He did not. He remained calm with every word and action He took, and pressed on to the fate that was before Him. God’s mission to give us Eternal Life was more important to Jesus than saving Himself. Because of His attitude and selfless act, I am given the grace and strength I need to endure what comes my way each day. Instead of whining, complaining, and getting angry with life and those around me, I need to adopt the attitude of Jesus saying, “Not my will Lord, but yours be done.” Jesus is bigger and stronger than any battle you will face on this earth, and with His help, you can get through anything that comes your way. Surrender your life and circumstances to Him. When you do, you will notice that your anger and complaints suddenly turns into peace and trust.

I am so thankful for the death and resurrection of Jesus, and nothing is more important to me than to obey Christ no matter the cost. He is worth any amount of suffering!