Suffering produces endurance
This year looking at the men and women finals of the French Open tennis tournament I was amazed at the sheer brilliance of the finalists. Their atlethecism and skill were almost super human.
So when I read the 2nd Reading of this week - Romans 5: 1-5 ‘we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame’ I thought of the long hours they must have practiced, putting their body through a sort of suffering to produce this level of performance.
High performance in any human endeavour requires years of discipling the body. I think St Paul must have been reflecting on this since he frequently uses athletic metaphors in his letters to illustrate the Christian life—its discipline, perseverance, and ultimate reward.
Suffering tests us, yes, but it also shapes us. It invites us to lean more fully into grace, to trust more deeply, and to become more resilient. And as we endure, something beautiful begins to grow: character rooted in Christ.
I can see this in a married couple, members of our prayer group—the wife currently undergoing chemotherapy and radiation for cancer. Their journey is not easy, but through every hospital visit, every moment of pain and uncertainty, their faith has not wavered. In fact, it has deepened. I’ve watched them become more prayerful, more tender with each other, more open to the grace of God in the smallest of blessings.
Their endurance, forged in suffering, has produced a character that radiates hope—not a hope rooted in outcomes, but in the unshakeable presence of Christ who walks with them. Their witness reminds us that even in affliction, God is at work, forming something holy.
If we are in a season of struggle, let us take heart. God is not wasting our suffering. He is forming us, refining us, and planting seeds of hope that will bear fruit in due time. Let us remain faithful in the waiting, patient in the trial, and open to the quiet work of the Holy Spirit within us.
Like our courageous couple, may we find strength in surrender, and peace in knowing that God is closer than we imagine—working all things together for good. And when the time is right, we too will look back and see how endurance gave rise to character, and how character gave birth to a hope that does not disappoint.
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