Devotion – Suffering is joy

‘Do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you’ (1 Peter 4:12).

Peter’s letter was written to the poor, disenfranchised people to whom the gospel appealed. He exhorted them by saying, ‘Don’t be surprised at the troubles you are having’; don’t think that this is a strange situation that you are suffering. Don’t expect that doing good will give you an easy life of health and wealth. It may seem very strange to us that Peter is saying that they should be happy to be sharing in the suffering of Jesus. Doing God’s will is no guarantee that you won’t endure suffering. The Christians of Asia Minor were experiencing a test. Just as a fire purifies gold from contaminants, suffering strips away the externals. It reveals who we really are.

This passage from 1 Peter is not about ‘Why do good people suffer?’ It is a letter of encouragement, reassurance and hope for people suffering rejection because they follow Jesus.

Think of a time when you were really suffering. How did you respond? Did your prayer life improve? Did you come closer in your relationship with God? I know that this has been true for me.

If you are ridiculed for being a follower of Jesus, then do not be ashamed. It is not an insult, but a badge of honour. In today’s reading, Peter alludes to Jesus’ teachings in the Beatitudes discussed yesterday: ‘Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man’ (Luke 6:22). In the end, whose opinion will count?

Prayer Points

We ask for God’s continued protection through the pandemic that he may keep us all safe and healthy

We thank God for the 2021 student leaders who were installed last week

We give thanks for the work of the school council, that they support and guide the school with wisdom and compassion

We pray for the Bui, Cheng and Cinzah families

Micah Award

To Huai Pui for showing love and compassion to those around her