"Why have you afflicted thy servant?" That’s a question from Numbers, Chapter 11.
Hi, I'm Joni Eareckson Tada and it's a simple question we've all asked God: “God, why have you afflicted me, me, your servant of all people?! It's not like I'm your enemy. I'm on your side. I serve you. I love you. So why do you deal with me so harshly?!” Listen, I’ve been there. I could have written that question in Numbers chapter 11. There have been times I have felt so decimated by suffering, I can barely whimper, “Jesus help me; Jesus help me.” But you know what? For the believer who is really looking to understand, there are answers.
I know; I've found them. After so many years of dealing with affliction, I know, I understand that my heavenly Father really, really, truly values my faith, and so He sends me frequent troubles in order to test and try my faith. If my faith is worth anything, it'll stand the test. Impurities are afraid of the fire, but gold is not. Pearls made out of paste dread pressure, but a real gem can stand the test. It's a pretty poor faith that can only trust God when the body is full of health, but true faith clings to the Lord when the body is sick and when spirits are depressed. God absolutely delights in that kind of faith—faith that says with Job, "Though he slay me, yet will I trust him." That's the kind of faith God is after: faith that believes even when the smile of God is hidden from view.
As someone once wrote, "You can't discover the sweet perfume of cinnamon unless it's pressed and beaten. You couldn't feel the warmth of the fire unless the coals are utterly consumed. You can't enjoy the juice of the grape if those grapes weren't trodden in the wine press." Besides, present afflictions tend to heighten future joy. Let me repeat that: our pain in the present is what heightens future joy. Isn’t peace sweeter after the conflict? Peace when times are peaceful doesn't mean as much, does it—ah, but enter conflict and, oh my, how precious peace becomes. And think about rest: it's always more welcomed after the labor, don't you think? Rest, to be honest, can get a little boring—but enter the labor and, oh, how wonderful it is to then rest. And I'm convinced that the recollection of past sufferings may well one day enhance the bliss of heaven. Wow! Eternity with the Lord will be so much more heavenly to those of us whose faith has been tested and battered and beaten and tried, time and again.
So if you are a servant of the most high God who is asking that question from Numbers, Chapter 11, "Why hast thou afflicted thy servant?" you don't need to look too far because there are answers. And to make it real simple, Jesus is the answer, for we are told in II Peter 2:21 that Christ suffered for you leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps. So if you're hurting today, let me remind you that a servant is not above his Master; if Christ endured affliction, then we best face it head on with his attitude. I pray today that as you embrace your own afflictions, your faith will be refined as gold. And I pray that those same afflictions will, for you, heighten your future joy and enhance one day your bliss of heaven. Look, I would really like to hear from you on this topic. Maybe you’re going through tough times right now and are in need of prayer, or perhaps you’re still in the questioning stage—and that’s okay. Or maybe you just have a different view on suffering. I’d like to hear your comments on what I’ve shared today, just let me know at joniandfriends.org; again, that’s joniandfriends.org.
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