Skip to content To live is to suffer. And to suffer is to learn. But it need not be the sole source of wisdom and growth. Here are the top 5 ways to learn the lessons of sufferings without the suffering
Immerse yourself in scripture.
In addition to engrossing yourself into scripture transporting your attention to eternal things, the Bible is filled with lessons and stories that tackle the problem of suffering. From Job, Joseph, Paul and of course Jesus himself. Their lives are filled with hardships and difficulty yet there is a treasure trove of insights and life changing lessons that you can glean from their lives. How not to suffer, the perspective you should have while suffering, and how to be resilient despite the suffering. All packaged in scriptures. Check out: How to Increase Faith in God- Top 10 Ways
Schedule in Prayer
Life is busy. It’s hard to find time to do all the things on your daily agenda, but make prayer a priority in your agenda. I found that if I don’t make a deliberate effort to prayer at regular times of day, life takes over and prayer is an after thought. Instead make it a habit to pray. Associate prayer with what you consistently do. Pray while your brush your teeth. Before a meal, while you drive. Set an alarm for it. Wear a bracelet reminder. Whatever you do, do more of it.
Prayer similar to scripture moves your attention to God. And it makes sense since you are speaking to him in prayer. It’s a reminder in your day that although you are in this world your thoughts are in another, in a good way.
Be in the presence of the suffering
It’s hard to be self absorbed when someone next you is going through pain. Which is why it’s a good idea to be near them. Not that one should have a secondary selfish agenda to be around the hurt, but the truth is you can learn from it. Since you don’t want to suffer, being around those that do is the second best thing. When you are around those that suffer you see more clearly the fragility of life, and the priorities that are more important. Empathizing with them helps you feel their plight and hopefully also absorb the perspective that they may be experiencing.
Seek Wisdom from Spiritual Mentors
You become who you hang out with. It is said that you can learn a lot about someone by learning about the 5 people they hang out with the most. Sociologists would agree that you tend to adopt the view points of your friends, and I’m sure you’ve notice this in your own life. Knowing this, seek out spiritual mentors, people you admire. Perhaps this proximity can rub off on you.
Meditate
Meditating is a powerful tool to be self aware. Meditating on scripture such as 1 Peter 5:10. To reflect and be focused on a single thing can bring valuable insight and lessons. In addition to scripture try meditating on your need for Christ. If you are not currently sufferring, you are only not suffering because you do not know your true state. You have forgotten that you are a sinner, and you and everyone you know is mortal. Meditate on these things, not so that you can be in despair but so that you can have an understanding that Christ reallly is your only hope and that life without Christ is to be in despair.
Conclusions- Learn the Lessons of Suffering
Through these habits you can learn the valuable lessons of suffering without suffering. Suffering though is a part of life and God uses suffering as means to strengthen us. So don’t fear the hard times, but still pray that you learn the lessons of suffering without the need to suffer.
