Accepting Suffering

Recently, a prayer I’ve prayed for years was answered.  Someone was seeking to change their life as I had prayed they should.  But I’ve come to know this person better over the years, and I suddenly realized: They may try to do what I prayed for, but they are unlikely to succeed.  They do not have within them the fortitude (nor faith) to succeed in those efforts.  And likely, their failure will leave them that much more depressed at their life’s situation.  God could see the result of what I prayed for, but I continued to nag Him.  And, finally, He gave me what I prayed for --- which He may still make good out of, because He is God and can do all things, but my prayer for this person has now changed:  I now pray he comes to know God more, and be who God would will him to be.

That is a prayer for God’s will, not mine.

I was praying The Rosary of the Seven Sorrows of Mary this morning.  From the Prophecy of Simeon to the Flight to Egypt, and to the Passion, death and burial of her Son, Mary was there and in great sorrow.  I read meditations about her sorrows, and about what she was thinking, and it suddenly struck me:  Not once does she cry out “God, don’t let this happen; stop this suffering!”  Never does she plead for God to do something else.  She accepts her suffering, and that of her Son.  She trusts there is a reason God would allow this.  She trusts.  When the angel says to flee to Egypt because Herod wants to kill Jesus she says: “Even though God has power over everything, He wants us to flee with Jesus, His Son.  God will show us the way, and we shall arrive without being caught by the enemy.”  She could have thought or said many things, but she trusted.

How many of my prayers are for specific things?  God do this or give me that or heal this person.  How many of my prayers are even contrary to Scripture, like Romans Chapter 1, because that is not how I want things to be.  Believing and living many of the words of Scripture means I or others have to suffer in some way, and I don’t want that, so I pray for the suffering to end.  I pray for God to deny Himself and His Word, for what I want, because I think is a loving thing to do.  I make up reasons why Scripture must be wrong, to be against what I want.  Scripture also has words about God saying on Judgement Day: “I don’t know you,” no matter how much I followed the Commandments or Scripture --- in my way.

We have many friends on earth, but in eternity even marriage won’t exist.  We can’t let our priorities for earthly happiness, friendships, prevent us from the eternal life Jesus died to offer us.  We need to pray, to grow in intimate prayer with Jesus, to tell Him our concerns, even with His words in Scripture.  We need to trust He can make good out of all suffering, things that aren’t as we’d like, and ask for His love and mercy, on us, our friends, and our country.  And follow The Way, as Mary did.

And along the way, we need to accept the suffering that accompanies the path to His Eternal Happiness, where there will never be suffering again.

These are difficult times, in the world, in our country, in our families, among our friends.  Jesus, I trust in You.  Have mercy on our country, those you bring into our lives, and us.  My Jesus, I trust I You.