Accepting Hardship

" We have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by Faith, to this grace in which we stand, and we boast in hope of the glory of the Lord.  Not only that, but we even boast of our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance, and endurance, proven character, and proven character, hope, and hope does not disappoint, because the Love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. " -- [Romans 5: 1-5].

Several years back, when my life seemed upside down and backwards, and I was having a hard time even getting through the day, I memorized the Serenity Prayer. Even now, I recite this prayer daily.

We all know about the first verses of the Serenity Prayer: "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." --[Reinhold Niebuhr.] We have seen this prayer imprinted on countless coffee mugs and plaques, embroidered on throw pillows and screened onto T-shirts.

Perhaps few know that this prayer goes on for several more lines: "Living one day at a time, Enjoying one moment at a time, Accepting hardship as a pathway to Peace, Taking-- as Jesus did-- this sinful world as it is, Not as I would have it. . ."

I take the first few lines to mean that we must be wise enough to recognize those things that are too big for us to handle. We need to "Let go and let God".

The next few lines are more difficult to swallow-- "unhip", and even countercultural today.

We want, above all else, for life to be easy, right?  Our modern goal is for there to be no struggle. WHO would ever want to accept hardship as any part of our life?

We have instant Jello, we have grocery delivery services, we have pre-cut vegetables, we have fruit smoothies= no chewing required! We have yoga pants and track pants, no zippers or belts or belt loops required. We developed, first, the telephone, so we don't have to walk over to a neighbor's house to see if they are home; then, we developed voice mail, then e-mail, then texting. Now, we have voice recognition software and emojis-- no typing required whatsoever. No human contact, either.

Once, I was telling my son that I grew up in a home with with no color TV, no microwave, no videos, no electronic games, no cell phones, no computers (it was called a "typewriter"). He pronounced my childhood "barbaric".  As if dinner had been medieval,  like Henry VIII ripping the flesh off a charred drumstick, grilled over an open flame. No pots or pans, no forks, no dirty dishes.

Don't get me wrong, God still regards us as His precious children. He does not WANT us to suffer.

But somehow, since everything is delivered to us now with the click of a button, we expect life to be simple. Fast. Painless. No muss, no fuss.

With our teens relying on electronics so fully, there are some teens who are downright anxious about having a real-time, face-to-face conversation with an actual human being -- someone who has raw emotions, someone who may (gasp) even interrupt, may have human needs or may come to disagree with them.

Sometimes, as Christian parents, we are tempted to rescue our kids from pain. But as much as we try to be loving, compassionate parents, we cannot prevent our kids from experiencing a harsh remark from another kid in school, a job loss in the family, the death of a friend or relative, a failing grade, or  a rejection letter from a school or potential employer.

In Romans, you notice that St. Paul speaks of the difficulties of life openly. Life is not supposed to be pain-free.

Nowhere in Scripture are we promised a perfect, pain-free life. But God does say, "For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be His people, his treasured possession." --[Deuteronomy 7:6]. God sees ALL of our trials, and He walks with us. In our difficult life's journey, God wants us to draw closer to Him, our loving Father.

And, what we are promised from Jesus is that He considers us as His family. In Matthew 12:48, Jesus points to His disciples and says, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers? Here are my mother and my brothers. . .' " Before His death and Resurrection, Jesus calls His disciples -- and by extension, us--  the Lord's gift to Him.

I have tried, my whole life, to see all of the pain and traumas as something to be learned from.  What profit the extreme trials of life, if we do not take them as an opportunity to grow in wisdom and character?

I have been called resilient and strong. I have been praised for my patience and endurance. I have been called hopeful,  and even joyful.

But I could never have reached where I am today, without my God. Even in my darkest hours, I have cried out to God to show me the right path, to shower me with His wisdom, and to allow me to feel His loving presence.

In this sense, I can truly boast, not at all about my own personal qualities, but about the miraculous and saving power of God.

The Love of God, and all Hope which comes from Him, are present within me. And I will not hesitate to lean on His Love and Hope, all the rest of my days.

[Related posting: "Hating This Life", March 25, 2012].

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