I have always thought that to be a happy, successful Christian means that I would finally be at a place of peace and tranqulility. I wouldn't have any problems because my will would be spiritually linked with God's. I would be successful and full of joy and gladness and my life would not be so full of sinful chaos and snags.
Well, I am finding that this is not how some of the most spiritual people of all time lived their lives. They believed that suffering was what Salvation was to be for them, for us. See "The Arena" by Bishop Brioncaninov. He writes, as a review of what the Spiritual Fathers taught, that suffering was brought on us by the Father to help us grow. In fact, Jesus was the prime example for us. He came to suffer for the sake of God's will, not for sin, but to Divinize our suffering and conquer death and hell. We are to follow in His footsteps and take up our cross and follow Him. The difference between Jesus' suffering and ours is that we are trully suffering for our sins.
What struck me the most about this is that life on earth for us is to be a sort of hell; a penitence for our sins. If we become so consumed by being pleasure filled, at peace, rewarding ourselves for what we assume to be our pious nature, we are in danger of losing this precious aspect of Salvation. In fact, we are in danger of losing it altogether. this is so hard for me because the moment I find myself doing something "self-sacrificing" I become prideful and believe that I deserve all maners of pleasure and praise because I have finally arrived: I have done something good and righteous and deserve recognition. I also believe that when I am in the midst of trouble, there must be something wrong with me and my place before God; I must have been rejected by Him and I become despondent. However, this is not true. From the Arena: "troubles sent to a man by the providence of God are a true sign of the Man's election by God."
This is a completely different way of seeing the purpose for suffering in our lives. Now, living my life according to this truth is where the challenge lies; the challenge of Salvation.
2:19 PM
