When Jesus came to this earth, He turned a lot of things people believed on their heads. Especially the things he taught about suffering.

As humans, our view of suffering is a simple equation. Suffering = pain = bad. No one likes bad news, hardship, discomfort, or loss. Because it hurts.

So what do we do with the fact that Jesus calls us to suffer? He calls his followers to do hard things, things that are painful and challenging and difficult. “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matt 16:24). And then He Himself went through great pain for our sake.

Our Christian faith challenges us in how we think about suffering.

There is a Chinese proverb that Mike found one day that offers a great illustration:

Once upon a time there was a Chinese farmer whose horse ran away. That evening, all of his neighbors came around to lament his terrible loss. They said, “We are so sorry to hear your horse has run away. How unfortunate!” The farmer said, “Perhaps.” The next day the horse returned to the farm, bringing with it seven wild horses, and the neighbors came to say, “Oh, how fortunate for you! You now have eight horses – you’ll be rich!” The farmer again said, “Perhaps.” The following day the farmer’s son tried to train one of the horses and was thrown off, breaking his leg. The neighbors then said, “Oh dear, that’s such bad luck,” and the farmer responded, “Perhaps.” The next day army officers came to the village, taking all able-bodied young men to fight in the war. The farmer’s son was left behind. Again all the neighbors came around and said, “How fortunate you are that your son was not taken!” And once again, the farmer replied, “Perhaps.”

(first told by Alan Watts, 1960)

This farmer had a realistic view of life. But couldn’t we also say that he had a godly view of life? Maybe suffering = pain = good. 

What???

The 6th century philosopher Boethius, in his book The Consolation of Philosophy, takes this concept to new heights. He proposes that there truly is no such thing as bad fortune, or even evil. Boethius’ proposition is that God, who is supremely good, orders and directs all things toward goodness. Therefore everything that happens, even things that seem horrific and unfair and evil, are actually GOOD. He says, “If you could see the plan of Providence, you would not think there was evil anywhere.” 

Could it be that the things in this world that we see as evil are really a part of a good plan perfectly designed by God? Romans 8:28 is clear that “all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” If we hold to this verse, even though we may not like our circumstances, we can trust that somehow God is using them for good.

Boethius goes on to say that distress and adversity are nothing more than an opportunity to grow in virtue. Which leads me to ponder: How can something be bad if it draws us toward God?

I’m sure Jesus’s followers, at the time, viewed Jesus’s crucifixion as evil. But their eyes could not see the master plan. What a loving and amazing and good act it actually was. 

There is so much suffering going on in the world. My heart breaks when I hear of the horrific things going on in Gaza, the devastation of recent hurricanes in Florida, even the painful circumstances of the lives of some of my coworkers and friends. But I think it would show very shallow faith if I just thought, oh those things are just bad and that’s the end of that. I think a deeper faith in Christ would react – PERHAPS! We don’t know what God is doing in every situation. We have no clue. But we can trust His Word to be true: ALL things work together for good. 

I’m going to admit it – I don’t like these words. I want my life and the lives of all the people I know to be full of happiness and rainbows and sunshine. But that is not to be on this earth. That’s what heaven is for. 

Dear Lord, as I face things in this world that I do not like, help me to rest in the fact that you are loving and have a master plan that is bringing good out of what seems so evil.