I wrote this article in February 2025 after my wife Emily and I experienced our first miscarriage. I was devastated and heartbroken, but in the midst of that valley, the Lord drew me to search the Scriptures afresh on the theme of suffering in the life of the believer. There I was reminded that God has a purpose in every sorrow — and that even in our deepest pain, His grace sustains us. My passion in life is to proclaim the sacred Word of God, so that others may find in Christ the same hope and comfort He has given me.

 

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Suffering has engulfed every aspect of our lives to where it has become impossible to escape it. Everyone faces it in many diverse ways. This may be a biased statement, but in my opinion, it seems that the children of God tend to suffer more than others. The population of people that serve Creator of the Universe are the ones that get put through the most hardship.

 

Why is that?

This doesn’t make sense, does it?

Why would a child of God be allowed to go through trials and tribulation?

Doesn’t it make sense to think that if you serve God that He would protect you from all forms of heartache, pain, trouble, and despair?

 

Many people think this way. When horrible events occur in the world, scoffers will point their finger to the sky and cry out, "If He’s such a loving God, He would stop all this now!"

 

So, why doesn’t He?

 

Before you read any further, this is not an article that is written for the purpose to pick God apart or to blaspheme God. That is not my intention. My intention is to illuminate God’s purposes behind sending suffering.

 

As we move forward, let’s answer a previously asked question. I asked if it made sense to think that if you serve God that He would protect you from all forms of heart ache, pain, trouble, and despair. The answer to the question is no. God does not protect His children from all forms of trials. Do I believe that sometimes God shields us from some troubles? Yes, I do, but God will allow hard times in our lives for divine purposes. According to the scriptures, God lets His children be faced with "diverse temptations" (Jam. 1:2) and "trouble, perplexations, persecutions, and being cast down." (2 Cor. 4:8-9)

 

Where Did It Come From?

To understand the mechanism of how God uses suffering in the lives of His children, we first need to know where it came from. It was not God’s will for suffering to be in this world. In Genesis, God created a perfect world that was meant for Him to have perfect fellowship with mankind that He created. In Genesis 2, God commanded the man that "of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die" (Gen. 2:17). In Genesis 3, the serpent came and lied to Eve, Adam’s wife, saying that if she ate of the forbidden tree, she would not die. Eve then took of the tree and ate, soon followed by Adam who did the same, which brought sin into the world.

 

Sin is why we have suffering.

Suffering is the result of sin.  

   

When God came into the garden and Adam had confessed what they had done, God laid a curse on both Adam and Eve which yielded forth suffering on both parties. Eve’s curse is found in Genesis 3:16, which states that she would experience sorrow and pain in childbirth and in raising her children. Adam’s curse is found in Genesis 3:17 which states that God has cursed the earth and would bring thorns and thistles along with the fruit, making it more difficult for harvest and requiring excruciating labor. The description of Adam’s curse can be mirrored in what is said in Job 7:1-2: "Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth? Are not his days also like the days of an hireling? As a servant earnestly desireth the shadow, And as an hireling looketh for the reward of his work." There are many things that the Garden of Eden teaches us and one of them is that sin brings forth ultimately death, but also suffering before then.

 

Who is Affected?

As stated earlier, everyone suffers. What Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden affects everyone and we all suffer because of what they did. One sin has caused a large ripple effect to take place that is still moving abroad thousands of years later to this current time. All are affected. People of all ages throughout time have been touched by suffering.

 

What I want to focus on is the relationship between suffering and the child of God. Why must there be one to begin with? I have seen faithful stewards of God endure relentless tribulations in this life. From unexpected losses, painful illnesses, messy conflicts, financial ruin, marital problems — the list goes on and on. I have seen abundant problems drop like ten-ton barbells in the lives of faithful believers, and it took a toll on their lives. Meanwhile, the wicked seem to prosper.

 

This is a question I have been asked at times: "Why do the wicked seem to prosper?" Have you evernoticed that in your own life? It’s okay if you have because there were people in the Bible that noticed it too. Let me give you some examples of people from scripture who said the wicked were prospering while the righteous were perishing:

 

"Righteous art thou, O LORD, when I pleadwith thee: yet let me talk with thee of thy judgements: Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper? Wherefore are all they happy that deal very treacherously?" (Jer. 12:1)

 

"Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?" (Hab. 1:13)

 

"Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches. Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency. For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning." (Ps. 73:12-14)

 

"Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgement is with the LORD, and my work with my God." (Isa. 49:4)

 

"Your words have been stout against Me, saith the LORD. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against thee? Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept His ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the LORD of hosts? And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered." (Mal. 3:13-15)

 

Even those whom God had redeemed thought they were suffering unfairly, though they were living faithful to His calling!

 

But was that really the case?

Was God being unjust in making His children suffer and allowing the wicked to prosper just because? The answer is no.

 

God is not unjust. God is perfect in everything that He does. What we first need to understand is that God has a significant reason for every event that takes place in this world we live in. If He allows us to prosper or suffer, He has a good reason for it. He has a plan for His children when they are placed in the furnace of affliction.

 

We will now discuss the purposes the Lord has in mind for us when we suffer. 

 

God does not use difficult times for evil purposes — meaning, He doesn’t use trials to be mean or evil. God receives a lot of criticism from unbelievers because they accuse Him of being the evil God when something goes wrong in this world. Scripture teaches us in Romans that "all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose" (Rom. 8:28).

 

That phrase "all things" literally means all things!

Everything!

Everything works together for good!

 

That’s literally what Paul says in this text.

But for who?

 

Read back over the verse again and you’ll see who it’s for: to them that love God. Put it all together and Paul is telling the Romans that everything in this life works together for good to them that love the Lord. God works all things together for good to the believer. And this promise includes bad things! Even the bad things work together for a good purpose. This displays the sovereignty of God. He works every major and minor detail of this life for a greater purpose — and in the end, He gets the glory. Paul also touched on this in Ephesians 1 saying that He "worketh all things after the counsel of His own will."

 

Glory to the Lord!

 

Believers should take great comfort in this thought that God is sovereign not only over creation (as Genesis teaches), not only over salvation (as Ephesians teaches), but He is sovereign over everything in this life and has placed everything in its specific place to work out for the good of the saints and for His own glory! What a comfort! We have talked about the divine reason why suffering occurs, but do you still find yourself asking — why?

 

Purposes for the Trial: Why Did This Happen to Me?

1.) Trials Test Our Faith

Trials come as a test to reveal if our faith is genuine. Anyone can say "I’m a follower of Jesus," but hard times will prove if that is true or not. Jesus touches on this in the Parable of the Sower by saying the following: 

 

"But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended." (Matt. 13:20-21)

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What Christ is saying is that there are some who have received the Word in an emotional way, but it didn’t take a spiritual root into their heart. They stick around for a little while. When a trial comes or when persecution comes for being a Christian, they abandon what they professed to have had. The trial came and they may have gotten upset and blamed God. The persecution came and they may have thought to themselves "this isn’t what I signed up for" and left. These people who leave when trials come are those were never saved to begin with (1 John 2:19). Their faith was proven to be false by being unable and unwilling to endure the difficulty of the trial (2 John 1:9).

 

True faith produces endurance. A true believer who has put their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ will endure sufferings — whether they be personal sufferings such as a loss or financial hardship, or sufferings seen in the form of persecution for Christ’s sake. Whatever the circumstance, a true believer will cling to the cross during the storm because they have true saving faith in the one who can deliver and sustain them from all trouble and that is Christ Jesus. The apostles are examples of true believers who endured suffering. Paul, James, John, Peter — all suffered for the cause of Christ and never turned back because they had sincere faith and love for the Lord Jesus Christ. 

 

2.) Trials Help Us Fall Out of Love with the World

When trials come, sometimes people will try to find comfort in the things of this world to numb the pain. For the believer, finding relief in the affairs in this world is not possible because of His Spirit that gives us the desire to be holy as He is holy. If we run to the world to find comfort or solace, we will quickly realize that nothing this evil world has to offer can satisfy us or give us what we need in our moments of sorrow. Trials help us to keep our eyes off the world and our trust in the Lord and on obeying His will.

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"Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God." (1 Pet. 4:1-2)

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"If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth." (Col. 3:1-2)

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3.) Trials Teach Us to Rely on God’s Grace

"And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me." (2 Cor. 12:7-9)

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God gave Paul a thorn in the flesh and it was to teach him that God’s grace is enough and that was all he needed. And sometimes God sends us trials to teach us that very same lesson.

 

His grace is all we need.

His promises He will keep.

He will do what He set out to do in His work in our lives. 

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4.) Trials Train Us that We May Help Others

Through our suffering, God equips us so that we can help and minister to others who may have experienced the same thing we have: "Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." (Gal. 6:2)

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5.) Trials Show Us the Value of God’s Blessings

You may have heard the old saying, "You don’t appreciate the mountain top until you have experienced the valley" — and that’s what trials teach us. 

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6.) Trials Make Us Christ-like:

Through fiery trials, we are refined and purified from impurities. In Scripture, God uses the metaphor of metals being burned in a fire to show what He does with the believer’s heart. When metals are put in the fire, they’re melted, and the impurities rise to the surface to be removed before the metal cools down. God places believers in the fiery furnace of affliction to remove sinful impurities and tendencies in order to make them more like Himself. The below Scripture show us how God refines the believer.

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"That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ." (1 Pet. 1:7)

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"And I will bring the third part through the fire, and I will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on My name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God." (Zech. 13:9)

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"Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction." (Isa. 48:10)

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"And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness." (Mal. 3:3)

 

What is the End Result of our Trials?

1. That above all, Christ will be glorified (2 Cor. 12:9-10)

2. That believers will be glorified through Christ’s power (Rom. 8:17; 2 Cor. 4:17)

3. Believers will be rewarded and compensated for their suffering (2 Tim. 4:7-8; Jam. 1:12)

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May God bless you and keep you as you endure the straight and narrow road that leads to life eternal.

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