Can any good come from my suffering?

Job 5:17-18“Consider the joy of those corrected by God! Do not despise the discipline of the Almighty when you sin. For though he wounds, he also bandages. He strikes, but his hands also heal.”

2 Corinthians 7:8-12I am not sorry that I sent that severe letter to you, though I was sorry at first, for I know it was painful to you for a little while. Now I am glad I sent it, not because it hurt you, but because the pain caused you to repent and change your ways. It was the kind of sorrow God wants his people to have, so you were not harmed by us in any way. For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death. Just see what this godly sorrow produced in you! Such earnestness, such concern to clear yourselves, such indignation, such alarm, such longing to see me, such zeal, and such a readiness to punish wrong. You showed that you have done everything necessary to make things right. My purpose, then, was not to write about who did the wrong or who was wronged. I wrote to you so that in the sight of God you could see for yourselves how loyal you are to us.

Suffering can bring great renewal and healing if it drives us to God.

2 Corinthians 12:10That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Sometimes we suffer because we are dealing with the consequences of our sin. We can learn from our mistakes and avoid repeating them in the future. At other times, suffering occurs from hardships outside our control. During these times we have the opportunity to learn and grow, so take advantage of each opportunity. It will help us to deal better with suffering in the future, and it will teach us to recognize and avoid certain troubles down the road.

Proverbs 10:25When the storms of life come, the wicked are whirled away, but the godly have a lasting foundation.

Isaiah 33:2Lord, be merciful to us, for we have waited for you. Be our strong arm each day and our salvation in times of trouble.

Sometimes the suffering that comes to us through tragedy is not our fault. It just happens. We live in a fallen world where sin is often allowed to run its course, affecting both believers and nonbelievers alike (Matthew 5:45). God doesn’t want to see us suffer, but the great message of the Bible is that he promises to bring renewal, healing, and spiritual maturity through it so that we can be stronger and better equipped to help others and to live with purpose and meaning.

Romans 5:3-4We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.

2 Corinthians 1:5The more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ.

2 Corinthians 12:10That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

2 Timothy 2:10So I am willing to endure anything if it will bring salvation and eternal glory in Christ Jesus to those God has chosen.

Hebrews 12:11No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.

James 1:3-4You know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

When suffering is for our good, Christ’s glory, and the building of his church, we should be content, even happy, to accept it.