“The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, establish, strengthen, and support you after you have suffered a little while.” 1 Peter 5:10
Suffering. It happens daily around the world, and yet most of us pray that we would be saved from suffering. We pray for the trials to end; they will miraculously be solved without us having to walk through the struggle. It is hard to see the benefit in suffering. It doesn’t matter that we read of the suffering and struggle of pretty much every character in the Bible in varying levels, including Jesus; we still somehow want suffering to bypass us.
This Scripture lists out some of the benefits of suffering – restoration, being established, being strengthened, and receiving support. These all happen as a result of our suffering.
Restoration is defined by Oxford Languages as the action of returning something to a former owner, place, or condition. There are times that we are broken by others or our own actions and God restores us to a former condition. However, His greater process of restoration came in restoring man through the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ. His resurrection made possible to restore us into the pre-sin relationship with God. He tore the vail and made it possible for us to boldly come before the throne of God.
“Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16
To establish is defined by Lexicon :: Strong’s G4741 – stērizō as to strengthen, make firm; tropically (not so in secular authors) to render constant, confirm, one’s mind . Struggle helps us establish what we have faith in. Someone can tell me “God will provide.” And while I can have faith that He will, I come out of a financial struggle with the constant belief that not only can He, God will. I have struggled financially, and when those struggle come for me, or for others, I have the firm faith that God will take care of it in His perfect timing.
Strengthen is defined by Lexicon :: Strong’s G4599 – sthenoō as to make strong, to strengthen: one’s soul. Struggle strengthens our soul. On the other side of struggle is joy. The joy of the Lord is our strength. When we endure through the struggle we will know that we can face the next trial with confidence in Him. The blessing of making it through a struggle is the strength in knowing He will see us through regardless of what comes our way.
“My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” James 1:2-4
The last blessing listed is support. Support is defined as Lexicon :: Strong’s G2311 – themelioō – to make stable, to ground Support can come in many ways. God may bring others to help carry the burden or encourage you on the other side of the struggle. He may give you a Word that gives you solid ground to stand on. Support may come in you being able to provide help to the next person. Support may come in the form of an unexpected raise, check in the mail, or gift from a stranger. It depends on what we need in the moment, and God knows what that is and the best way for us to receive it as we come up of a struggle.
When we face times of struggle, it is important for us to remember that it will eventually pass. One of my life verses is: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18
We will either make it through the struggle, or we will be with the Lord. Neither is exclusive of the other. Regardless of whether the struggle ends in victory on this side of heaven or not, there is a glory that will be revealed i and through our lives.
Lord, I know I don’t like struggle any more than the next person. However I have seen Your faithfulness in every step of my journey so far, even in great suffering, and I know You will never fail me. When I am in the midst of the struggle help me to keep my eyes on You. Let me remember that at the end of the struggle You will restore me, establish me, strengthen me and support me. You will see me though until the end. Help me to show others the blessed side of suffering. In Jesus name. Amen.
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