He Gets Us Week Two
Suffering
- Do you think we have a true handle on suffering in America? What are some things we Americans considering “suffering” that people in the rest of the world won’t thing is a big deal or they can’t relate at all?
- God is God so do you believe and remember in the heat of the moment that he truly relates to your struggle? How so?
- “Who for the joy set before him endured the cross.” Joy was set before Jesus at a distance beyond the cross and suffering. How do we overcome the obstacle of seeing only the immediate suffering to seeing the joy of the future?
(Leaders: We need to the cling to truth in the moment to set us free. How bad off am I really right now? For example: I have a friend successful friend who is a high-level executive at Home Depot who often says when a crisis comes up, “In 24 hours, it will look different”. )
- How can humility take the edge off our suffering?
(Leaders: One – it’s humbling to be honest with ourselves and realize when we have interpreted inconvenience as suffering. They are not the same! Two – when we are truly suffering from loss or tragedy we need to remind ourselves of the temporary condition of our suffering (2 Cor 4:17) and respond with gratefulness for the support we have (1 Thess 5:18). Three – Stop reacting and start listening. In the midst of this am I hearing what God is saying to me right now?
Bonus Reflection from the Biblical Text
- If you want to be an overcomer, then there will be things to overcome.
“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says…To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God…He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says…He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death….He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says…To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.”
(Rev 2:7, 11, 17)