Suffer With Joy

A Reflection on the Gospel for February 17th, 2019:
​Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Luke 6

Jesus came down with the twelve and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon.

Then Jesus looked up at his disciples and said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man.

“Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the Prophets.

“But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep. Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false Prophets.”

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Suffering has always been an idea that I have struggled with. How can suffering be meaningful? How can it make us better? Why does suffering happen to good people? I most definitely do not have the answers to all of these questions. However, I know from personal experience that how we react and deal with suffering can either lead us down a path of despair or joy. Think of the people in your life (including yourself) who are amazing, beautiful people, yet who have endured so much suffering. Surely they were not completely brought down by their trials and tribulations. God is there with us in the suffering and He wants to transform it into something beautiful; into peace and joy.

"God is there with us in the suffering and He wants to transform it into something beautiful; into peace and joy."

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Lately, I’ve realized that there are certain people I turn to in my life when I am struggling or hurting. We have those people who allow us to vent and we feel more at peace when in their presence. Sharing those deep hurts and worries with these friends deepens our relationship with them. It allows them to see a different side of who we are and it also shows that we trust and care about their input in our lives. Sharing and lifting up our hurts can be frightening, but in my experience, it almost always brings a greater sense of calm to my life. However, we have to make the choice to share these parts of our lives with others. We must trust them enough to show them the most vulnerable parts of ourselves. 

Similar to the way I have to choose to share the more negative parts of my life with my best friends and loved ones, I have to choose to confide in God with my hurts as well. Without these safe people in my life and without turning to God, I feel more overwhelmed and have a sense of internal chaos.

We are not always in control of our circumstances. In fact, it seems as though a lot of the negative spirals that we experience can be beyond our culpability. 

It is such a beautiful thing though, to choose to be joyful. To choose to let God take care of us; to lift the weight of our anxieties off of our shoulders, is an amazing privilege that God desires to provide for us. He wants for us to turn to Him in the hard times. God wants to be who we confide in when we’re struggling; to be that important person in our lives. When we trust in Jesus and give him all of the things that are out of our control, and even the things that we have done a poor job at controlling, He rejoices. 
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Let God help you and love you, for yours is the kingdom of God.

Megan Noye

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