What do we do with our suffering? Our Savior descended before he ascended. And in His descent, He gained depths of knowledge, as well as depths of compassion. At our baptism, we descend into the water in order to rise and be born again. We descend into the grave in order to rise in the resurrection. There is a balance between our descent and ascent. As we experience greater depths of suffering, we become capable of even greater heights of joy. We are all part of one eternal round. As you trace a circle, you must go down as well as up to complete the circle. Do you believe that trials equal punishment from God or that your ‘down’ equals failure? Instead, can we recognize that our times of sorrow and pain are a part of our own natural cycle or rhythm? The earth has a rhythm from day into night. The seasons cycle from summer into winter. Our moments of suffering are a part of our own rhythm of descent. And, with God, we can then ascend to even greater heights. The morning break always shines. The rebirth of Spring always comes. And our ascent from the depths of our pain and our suffering will also come, as we look forward with hope to Him who is Eternal.
By Kathy Truman
