It was an interesting week. Interesting in a sense that, within a week, there were a number of deaths that occurred to loved ones of whom we’re directly or indirectly connected to. Now, I know deaths are occurring every day, it’s just that it reoccurred to my mind that we’re indeed dying; how life is so fragile and short. And the thing is – life is fragile and short and so many people are not living their lives to the full. And when they leave the earth, with wasted lives, directionless and meaningless, no joy nor bliss nor glory await them but ultimate suffering.

That is what God has decreed upon men – for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. The only way to have life and live life to the fullest is surrendering one’s life to Jesus Christ, who is the Resurrection and the Life. But for us who have been born-again, who have this hope of eternal life, what kind of life should we be living here and now? How can we live the life to the fullest? When we live for the glory of God (1 Cor.10:31). “So we make it our goal to please Him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it (2 Cor.5:9).”

This world is not our home…

There is no other way. And be reminded that we are strangers and aliens in this world (1 Pet.2:11). This world is not our home. All the great blessings of life would not necessarily be found in this present time but we’re waiting for them in glory. Therefore we do not need to be distressed if we do not have everything that those around us are trying to get in this life. That is the truth that will deliver us from the pressures of the times. We must hold things lightly. We must not think that houses, cars, money and material gain is all that important. Even if we lack these things, the great treasures of our life remain untouched. To strive constantly to gain what everyone else has is a mistake. God teaches us to hold these things lightly. We must never forget that we are in the world but not of it. We are never to settle down here for good. C.S.Lewis has put it: “Our kind heavenly Father has provided many wonderful inns for us along our journey, but He takes special care to see that we never mistake any of them for home.”

We are pilgrims and strangers, passing through this world…

We are pilgrims and strangers, passing through this world. We are involved in it, deeply sometimes, but we are never to see ourselves as a part of it. And one day, we’ll be home just as He promised! “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal (2 Cor.4:18). “Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory (Col.3:2-4).”



Just the mention of it we wince. We don’t pray it comes to us but it does. Why is there pain? Why do well-meaning, God-loving followers of Christ suffer? C.S. Lewis had a great answer for that. “Why not?” he said. “They’re the only ones who can handle it.”

Suffering was interwoven into the life of Paul, and he knew the right way to handle it. In Acts 13-14, Paul suffered opposition and slander from the Jews in Antioch and Iconium. When they found him at Lystra, they stoned him, dragged him out of the city, and left him for dead. Paul was doing God’s will when this happened. It would have been very easy to question God’s love and God’s calling on his life. But how did Paul interpret these experiences?

Look at 2 Corinthians 1:8-92 Corinthians 1:8-9
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
8 For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life: ⁹ But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: sentence: or, answer  

WP-Bible plugin. “For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia: that we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life. Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead.” Paul is saying, “Yes, it was bad, but it caused me to trust God as I never had before.”

Paul talks about his sufferings throughout 2 Corinthians, and he even boasts about it because of what it taught him. What do you do with pain? You shouldn’t apply some quick-fix, false theology to it: “I bind all pain and all suffering in Jesus’ name.” You should pray for an end to your pain, but you should also pray, “Let me not waste this time.” You should ask God, “What are you trying to teach me? What lesson should I be learning?”



For Paul, that lesson was summed up in 2 Corinthians 12:9-102 Corinthians 12:9-10
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. ¹⁰ Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.  

WP-Bible plugin. The Lord told Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” And Paul concluded that he would take pleasure in his infirmities, and in the persecutions he suffered. He knew that his true strength came from God: “when I am weak, then I am strong” (v. 10).

Are you in some kind of pain today? I pray that you and I would learn what God is trying to teach us, even in the midst of pain. And rest your heart in the fact that His grace is sufficient for you!