Meditation and Reflection on Suffering


Bible Reading & Meditation  

 
2 Corinthians:1 1-11

 
Greeting   Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus but the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the church of God that is in Corinth, with all the holy ones throughout Achaia: grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanksgiving   Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and God of all encouragement, who encourages us in our every affliction, so that we may be able to encourage those who are in any affliction with the encouragement with which we ourselves are encouraged by God. For as Christ's sufferings overflow to us, so through Christ does our encouragement also overflow. If we are afflicted, it is for your encouragement and salvation; if we are encouraged, it is for your encouragement, which enables you to endure the same sufferings that we suffer. Our hope for your is firm, for we know that as you share in the sufferings, you also share in the encouragement.
We do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the afflication that came to us in the province of Asia; we were utterly weighted down beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, we had accepted within ourselves the sentence of death, that we might trust not in ourselves but in God, who raises the dead. He rescued us from such great danger of death, and he will continue to resuce us; in him we have put our hope (that) he will also rescue us again, as you help us with prayer, so that thanks may be given by many on our behalf for the gift granted us through the prayers of many.


 
 
 

Reflection:

 
 
Paul wrote to the Corinthians sometime after his three-year stay in Ephesus. It was not all smooth sailing for Paul. The bible reading describes the toll these problems took on him, he was tested beyond his strength and he was brought to the brink of despair. We do not know the nature of his problems, but we suspect he was imprisoned and faced possible death. What Paul shows us here, is that during these suffering times, he relied more heavily on the grace of God, and found meaning in his suffering.
 
 
Sink back into your chair...take deep breaths...inhaling the goodness of God and exhaling the pressure and stress of your day. Bring yourself in His presence. Ask God for the grace you need to hear what he is saying to you today. What insight into Paul have I gained from this reading? How do I react to suffering and problems? How do I react to the thought of dying?
 
 
 
 
  I write in my journal any thoughts or feelings I have experienced during this meditation and reflection.
 
 

 
 
Prayer Focus

 
Lord Jesus, I ask you to strengthen me as you strengthened Paul. Give me the ability to understand and be in control when the weight of my adversities want to hold me down. Teach me to be encouraged and to push forward when faced with bad times as I try to live as your follower. Amen

 
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