What Hurts Us Can Also Inspire Us
by Gary Henry
"Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Your word" (Psalms 119:67).
Painful experiences can help us, but only if we allow them to. “My brethren,” James wrote, “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” (James 1:2-4). So, enduring hardship is beneficial for us — if we allow the process to complete its work.
In Psalms 119:67, the psalmist said that affliction had made him a better person, more faithful in his walk with God: “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Your word.” In this context, affliction means being chastened or humbled by God. In Psalms 119:71,75, we hear the writer pray, “It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes . . . I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right, and that in faithfulness You have afflicted me.”
But can suffering actually inspire us? Yes, I believe it can.
First, we’re inspired to live courageously. Having survived, what a thrill it is to look to the future with new eyes, seeing bold possibilities rather than problems. “He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son” (Revelation 21:7).
Second, we’re inspired to live gratefully. In Christ, you and I are like war refugees: having been given sanctuary when we were helpless, we are grateful. And having been rescued from such an ordeal, we’re inspired to a higher kind of life. We will work hard and contribute generously to the community that helped us rise from the rubble.
Third, we’re inspired to view others compassionately. This one may be the most important. If affliction should make anyone more compassionate, shouldn’t that be the Christian? Though the suffering is hard to bear, if it gives us a heart for other sufferers — and inspires us to compassionate living — our new vision is worth the price we paid.
Sadly, we spend so much time avoiding hardship, as if finding the course of least resistance were our primary goal. When we live this way, we hurt ourselves more than we know. We’d be better off if we stood up straight, looked hardship straight in the eye, and said, “I am not going to dodge this difficulty. In the Lord’s strength, I am going to deal with it — and deal with it rightly.”
"Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced" (James Baldwin).
