A Love of Suffering

 Suffering is a great grace; through suffering the soul becomes like the Saviour; in suffering love becomes crystallised; the greater the suffering, the purer the love.

-St. Faustina

Suffering is such a powerful force. Such a beautifully powerful force.

In recent days, I have been hospitalized for digestive problems. Pain in my chest and abdomen, amongst a sea of other symptoms, of which I will not bore you with details. Through all this time though, I find myself trying hardest to focus on my Lord: in particular, His Passion. Strange, how even dark moments, God is able turn my eyes Heavenward.

Our modern society is one of comfort. We do not like pain, sorrow, nervousness. We cannot stand waiting, even short whiles, for the most important things. We can't comprehend how much good can come from embracing our Crosses, instead of hiding them away, and hoping they never rear their ugly faces again. It saddens me deeply.

Very little in this life is learned without suffering, at least in some small part. Be it boredom in a classroom, taking time away from our joys to study facts and things we care little about(though often have much greater value than we imagine!). Or it may be something much greater. Every heartbreak I've ever experienced has taught me something about myself, about God, and about my future spouse. At the time, these experiences seem unfair, but God has a habit of turning something broken into something so much better than we could have imagined.

How does one gain control over their base passions? Suffering through self-denial.

How does one learn humility? Suffering through humiliation.

How does one learn to forgive? Suffering through betrayal.

More than a mere teaching tool, suffering can be incredible purgative. It purifies our roughness, and our follies, if we allow it. Metal cannot be purified but by fire; wood cannot be made smooth but by the coarse work of the sandpaper. Do not pass through suffering without learning what you can from it.

Suffering can also be redemptive. Oh, that my greatest suffering would assist those in need; that I may bear their burdens so that they may see God's grace. Our suffering can be offered as prayer: and no mere one at that. Suffering offered as prayer is more powerful than any other force imaginable. Suffering offered as prayer is to unite our love, with God's. How many demons and forces of evil in the world tremble each moment a Saint undergoes suffering?

It is through suffering and death that the world's redemption came. It is through suffering that Christians throughout the ages have borne witness to the pagan masses. It is through suffering that we will be able to stand before the Throne, washed clean of our transgressions and inequity, and hear our God say, "Behold my dearly beloved son, in who I am well-pleased."

Remember: love is sacrifice.

-Gabriel