“Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praises.”
James 5:13
It is a well-observed spiritual truth that suffering is among the chief means for deepening communion with God. The fellowship of sharing in Jesus’ sufferings brings joy. Faith grows up in the broken soil of our pains. Hope, refined by trials, increases our longing for heaven. When I’m under the shadow of suffering, God’s promises renew my strength. Such times cause me to anticipate the weight of glory promised for my eternal future.
The fullness of God’s grace and mercy will only be granted in eternity. Yet His comforts are often bestowed, in smaller measure, here on earth. The Lord is tender and kind. He gives and takes away. He brings affliction but never too much, and restores the soul like with Job after his testing.
I will add my minor testimony to the chorus of many saints, to God’s faithfulness through trial. I have suffered a little and I have been graciously restored. I agree with all the others that suffering is indeed good in that it draws my soul closer to God. God’s glory has been revealed to me more clearly through suffering than it has in times of comfort.
Here is a dilemma. If the greatest pleasure God can give me is the gracious gift of Himself, if He is the most desirable object of my affection, and He gives Himself to me most fully in times of suffering, how am I to measure God’s many gifts of comfort? If communion with God is my greatest earthly experience and the greatest of these experiences come through suffering, what do I make of my comforts? There is such tension here, because while suffering I eagerly long for comfort. And when comfort and relief arrive I indeed rejoice. But if, as a result of such rest, my communion with God diminishes – even slightly – how do I appropriately delight in God’s comfort – as surely I ought to – if in comfort my fellowship with God is calmer?
Paul writes in Philippians 4:12 “… I also know how to live in the prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need.” I believe his special insight was not just related to living in suffering, but had as much to do with how to live in prosperity. I know that I need grace and mercy to survive times of suffering. But I also know that I desperately need grace and mercy to survive prosperity and comfort.
I have not counted, but I bet there are more warnings in the Word to those who have riches and comfort than there are to those who are in need. Being needy can be a wonderful advantage for building strong faith and rich communion with God. Comfort can be a deadly, soul-lulling disease, resulting in total loss. Neither state is inherently so. Neediness can cause people to covet and steal. Riches can enable generosity for the relief to many, to the glory of God. But I would guess that with regard to communion with God, the path of suffering is smoother than the road of riches.
Whatever the road, God’s grace can keep my fellowship with him full. However, learning the secrets of prosperity may be harder than learning the secrets of suffering. That’s because suffering, in faith, reflexively pushes my soul toward God. In the same way that I instinctively draw my hand away from a hot flame, my soul, in faith, draws to God in the heat of adversity. But when there is neither extreme heat nor extreme cold, but perfect warmth my soul relaxes and rests in its comfort. It is at these times I am most likely to drift, to wander, to meander. Drawing close to God is not as reflexive without suffering. But it is not impossible. I need to learn the secrets of communion with God in times of comfort and prosperity.
I have not learned this secret yet. I have only recently received mercy and restored comfort from the Lord after a season of affliction. I’m still getting used to my new comfortable clothes. But I think one secret for preserving communion with God can be found in James 5:13 – that is, singing. If I have received cheerful comfort from the Lord I am deeply obliged to sing praises. The more comfort – the more singing. Many psalms beautifully weave cries of longing for God during distress with songs of delight for the oil of gladness. One lesson in the school of godly comfort is singing. I need to sing to the measure of my blessing. If I am not singing, inside and out, I should beware of my comforts. If I sing praises, I will honor my God – the God of all comfort.
Lord cause my heart to sing, my mouth to declare your praises. Oh, that I might honor you and preserve my faith in times of blessing as well as in times of need. Amen.
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