I help a lot of people who are suffering in my medical community and this is for them but also anyone else who may be suffering in various ways right now.
I had written some of this over 20 years ago for parents whose children had died, in the support group I started. It’s timeless though.
Suffering- How can a loving Father allow His children to suffer?
Many think of God the Father as a stern drill Sergeant that we need to cower before. That’s utter nonsense. Some think of Him as a Genie in the sky who is there to grant us our wishes. That’s nonsense too.
When I became a parent I began to understand my Heavenly Father in a whole New Way! As a Loving Father.
My children will always be my children. There is nothing that they can do that will separate them from my love! There are different stages of maturity and each child has different character traits but I love each of them fully and equally.
Some were easier than others, but each one experienced their own unique challenges that I had to use wisdom in parenting. I could just look at one sternly and they would obey, whereas another would be so stubborn that it wouldn’t matter how much they were spanked, they weren’t going to obey. That form of punishment did nothing for them. However, taking away their belongings and toys worked wonders.
When my children were growing up and would enter new challenging stages, I would get frustrated or saddened at their choices but I also knew that they just didn’t understand yet.
When they were in pain, I often wanted to take their suffering away but I also knew that suffering was one way that they would learn and mature, and it was sometimes just the consequences of their actions.
There were even times when pain was necessary to protect them. For example, when they would have to have a medical procedure that was painful but necessary, like getting their tonsils removed, or getting shots. I would have experienced the pain for them but they had to experience it in order to receive the benefits.
I could try to explain why they had to go through it, but because of their age and immaturity, all they knew was that their parents, who say they love them, had allowed them to suffer.
It didn’t matter why though, and each child’s reaction could be different. One child may have crawled in my lap and let me comfort them, while another child might be angry and throw a temper tantrum.
The point is, no matter what the child’s reaction was, they were still my baby. I didn’t kick them out of the family. I knew that one day, when they were older, the pain would subside and they would finally understand why.
The thing about our Heavenly Father is that He has eternity in mind. The Bible says “For what is your life? It is but a vapor and then vanishes away” James 4:14. This life is the blink of an eye compared to eternity.
I have learned that our physical life, death and prosperity, is of no consequence to God, other than how it will effect our Spiritual life, death, and prosperity.
The first step in overcoming our suffering in this life is to understand and believe that our Father loves us. We have to know our worth and value as His child and that whatever we are experiencing right now is temporary.
Some days it feels like an eternity but our perceptions are wrong. It’s just the blink of eye compared to eternity.
I’ve experienced tremendous suffering and loss but I have understood my Father’s love and that even if I have to experience tribulations throughout this life, He will have me in His hands forever.
I will submit to His will in my suffering because that is where my character has developed. I pray for healing and know He is able. I do not lack faith and I have experienced his healing many times in my own life and with my children.
However, not my will but His be done. I remember when my first son was brain injured, my Heavenly Father spoke to me and said “I know that you have faith that I can heal. Will you have faith if I chose not to, in this life?”
My son was healed the day that he died. He took his first steps in Heaven. He was my greatest teacher and accomplished more for eternity’s sake at 2 1/2 years old than many people do in 90 years.
I have suffered with my neurological disease issues almost my whole life, even though it wasn’t diagnosed until 7 years ago. I have been an athlete and I have been partially paralyzed.
I believe that my Father has been healing my body and that He certainly has the power for complete healing but I also know that He has given me so many opportunities to help others, because of everything that I have survived. He has given me character traits and revelations in the midst of my suffering.
I wouldn’t wish my experiences on anyone but I wouldn’t trade them with anyone either. My Father knew the end from the beginning and had a specific plan for ME as His child, that I can recognize now, with maturity.
Everyone who has ever been healed has died, or will die. We can’t know His plans for us, but He does and He loves us. He made YOU special with a specific plan for your experiences and with the personality that He formed you with. You are the only one who can accomplish His will for YOU.
Rest in your Father. We don’t get answers if we’re never in a place to ask the question. It’s okay to crawl in His lap and just let Him love you but it’s also okay to be angry and throw a temper tantrum! He’s not going to kick you out of the Family! He loves you too much for that.
One thing my Momma did used to say, that always made me think hard about my obedience to my Father though. She said “You can pick your bottom. You can chose how low you’re gonna go. You can listen to Him in these circumstances and be obedient to His will, or you can be stubborn and rebel, doing it your own way, until He gets your attention!” “Whatever it takes is what I’ve always prayed for you. I’ve told the Lord to do whatever it takes in this life to make sure that I see you in the next!” Boy, did those words stick with me.
When I was at the heights of suffering and grief, I would think to myself, “This is hard enough doing it WITH God. It’s only going to be even harder if I’m stubborn and rebel. God, please keep me humble and teachable.”
I came out of the womb saying “I’ll do it my OWN self!” I was a fighter, stubborn, and believed that I was smarter than anyone else. Many of those traits have been good. I’ve been a survivor. However, I have tried to be humble before my Father because doing this life WITH Him can be hard enough. I don’t want to do it without Him! The beginning of my Wisdom started with recognizing how little I know!
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