Colossians 1:24
"Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is the church."
The apostle Paul took delight in suffering to fulfill God's mission to reach the Gentiles with the Gospel and plant churches. He was shipwrecked, beaten, stoned, left for dead, and imprisoned. While few believers in the U.S. face this type of suffering for God, let us remember that sometimes, when life confronts us with difficult situations (i.e. health issues, job loss, money problems, missed opportunities, etc...), that does not necessarily mean God is directing us away from where He wants us to be.
Sometimes His will is for us to suffer. While we prefer a smooth, comfortable life, living in this world with Biblical principles can cause the suffering of being harshly judged, loss of opportunities, family shunning, and in rare cases, imprisonment. Just because everything is not going "hunky dory" does not mean our path is being redirected by God.
God doesn't always make it easy for us to follow His will in obedience. Was it easy for Job to experience such loss just to demonstrate his faithfulness? Was it easy for Abraham to be on the verge of sacrificing his own son? Was it easy for Moses to lead that whining, disobedient, idolatrous but chosen people through the wilderness for 40 years? So why should we expect it to be easy for us to follow His will?
Let's remember that just because a door is slammed in our faces, that doesn't mean God is directing us elsewhere. Being faithful to God, His Word, and His guidance in our lives will undoubtedly cause us to suffer in some ways. While we don't go out looking for suffering, we can at least understand that it can be an honor and a joy to suffer for God and His church.
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