God's Sovereignty, Our Suffering, and Stewardship

Here is an excerpt from the message today about finding rest in God in them midst of suffering and pain:

Psalm 88

O LORD, God of my salvation; I cry out day and night before you. Let my prayer come before you; incline your ear to my cry! For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol. I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am a man who has no strength, like one set loose among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, like those whom you remember no more, for they are cut off from your hand. You have put me in the depths of the pit, in the regions dark and deep. Your wrath lies heavy upon me, and you overwhelm me with all your waves. You have caused my companions to shun me; you have made me a horror to them. I am shut in so that I cannot escape; my eye grows dim through sorrow. Every day I call upon you, O LORD; I spread out my hands to you. Do you work wonders for the dead? Do the departed rise up to praise you? Is your steadfast love declared in the grave, or your faithfulness in Abaddon? Are your wonders known in the darkness, or your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness? But I, O LORD, cry to you; in the morning my prayer comes before you. O LORD, why do you cast my soul away? Why do you hide your face from me? Afflicted and close to death from my youth up, I suffer your terrors; I am helpless. Your wrath has swept over me; your dreadful assaults destroy me. They surround me like a flood all day long; they close in on me together. You have caused my beloved and my friend to shun me; my companions have become darkness.
(Psa 88:1-18)

In this psalm, we find four features of the psalmist's plea that can help us deal honestly with our pain and suffering without letting our pain and suffering become an idol in our lives:

1. Recognition of and resting in the sovereignty of God over our suffering (vv. 6-8)
2. Recognition of the reality of our suffering (vv. 3-5)
3. Recognition of the depth and desperation in our suffering (vv. 10-12, 14-18)
4. Recognition of the help in our suffering (vv. 1-2, 9, 13)

From there spend some time in Luke 22:39-46 where Jesus is praying in the garden to the Father about the suffering he is preparing to endure.

From there spend some time in 2 Corinthians 12:7-11 wrestling with the reality that God said "no" to Paul's request for the removal of the thorn; rather, the relief that God sent came in the form of His all sufficient grace in Christ Jesus (DA Carson).

No matter what the circumstances or the form of suffering or the place from which the suffering comes, His grace is sufficient to enable us to endure resting in Him and at the same time acknowledging the reality and depth of the pain that we experience in this life.

A phrase that has gripped my thoughts since the death of my mom last summer: don't waste your suffering

I'm not sure where I heard it, but it has constantly come to my mind whenever suffering has been present. God, in his providential care, allowed whatever suffering and pain is taking place. We have a choice to wallow in self-pity or we can experience the pain to its fullest extent, but use it to exalt Jesus and sufficiency of His grace and power that rests upon us.

Just some thoughts...