good to be afflicted

Everyone has been afflicted.  At one time or another, we all have encountered intractable problems, persistent pain, and irreconcilable differences.  We wonder: where is God in all of this pain?

The Apostle Paul, himself afflicted in many terrible ways, responds to this question.  Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, Who comforts us in all our afflictions... (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).  God comforts us, promising never to leave, fail, or forsake us, and nowhere is this more evident than when we are troubled by circumstances outside or inside.  He empathizes with us in our weaknesses since Jesus has been tested in every way as we are (Hebrews 4:15).  At times, He rescues us from the lion's mouth, as He did for Daniel in the den and Paul in the face of an evil attack of some sort (2 Timothy 4:17).  When afflicted, we are encouraged to ask for God's comfort, and to ask others to join us in the asking.

But the Psalmist also writes this: before I was afflicted, I went astray, but now I obey Your Word.  He even goes so far as to say, it was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn Your Decrees (Psalm 119:67,71).  He now sees the eventual benefit of being afflicted since, when in distress, He turned to The Lord for comfort and experienced the other sense of that word.  God encouraged Him toward obedience and wisdom.  Paul references this positive byproduct of affliction when He speaks of the God of all comfort, Who comforts us in all our afflictions so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).  As Hallie neared the conclusion of her long illness, we said to each other, "We wouldn't wish this on anyone, yet we're not sure we'd want to trade it away."  In the eternal Presence of Jesus, she now sees the good in her prior affliction.  In His Presence myself in the here and now, I, too, am beginning to see it her way, and His.

Though we would never say to others in the throes of trouble, "You're blessed!" nonetheless, we can comfort one another in affliction, believing that nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the Love of God in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:39) and that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him and have been called according to His Purpose (Romans 8:28).