It's easy to feel like God is causing you to suffer through something that appears to be ruining your life. I used to feel this way about depression because I didn't fully understand what was happening to me. It took me about a year of studying to figure out what exactly it means for God to use our suffering for His glory.
God doesn't give us pain or suffering. That all comes from the enemy of our souls, the one trying to yank us out of God's hands, out of His almighty plan. What God does is takes everything we experience, good and bad, and works it into a plan we can't imagine or understand to ultimately bring Him glory. In the process, we get to discover what it feels like to be used by God and live in His freedom. The purpose of any one of us being on this earth is to live life as an example of God's grace to bring more people into His Kingdom.
I've finally started to see how God intends to use my suffering for His purpose. After sharing my testimony both on my blog and at the InterVarsity Large Group meeting, I faced both a lot of opposition from the enemy and a lot of encouragement by the responses from other people. Some people gave me encouragement to keep pressing on in my own journey, but others took the time to share their stories with me and I've been able to encourage them and help them find the resources they need. This has been so fulfilling and confirms even more to me that what I plan to do for a career is exactly what God intends.
To those of you experiencing suffering, I would encourage you to focus not on the suffering, but on the good things that can come of it. Remember what Romans 5:3-4 says: "Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope."
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