Bible Verses About

Posts Tagged ‘suffering’

“It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees… Before I was afflicted, I went astray.” Psalm 119: 67, 71

This is one of the most difficult Bible verses about humility.  No one wants to endure affliction and suffering, even when we know it’s for our own good.  We want to learn things the easy way and not have to go through the school of hard knocks.  Bible verses like this one are especially difficult for people who are somewhat spoiled and feel entitled to always having an easy life.  It takes a lot of humility to say that it was good to go through that hardship or affliction because it made me rely more on God and realize that His plan for my life is better than my own plan.  Most people don’t have enough humility to live their lives this way.  I’m one of them.

But when you really stop and think about it, sometimes hardships and affliction are really the very best things for us.  I think that everyone can look back at a time in their own lives when they considered themselves a bit spoiled, someone who took things for granted that they don’t take for granted today.  No one looking back, would ever say “I wish I was spoiled again” or “I wish I took things for granted again.”  No, we always are grateful for the experiential wisdom that we gain from going through hard times.

And Bible verses like this one point out an important truth about God.  God is more interested in our character than he is in our finances.  God cares more that we learn humility and become humble people who love others and serve them.  God definitely wants to bless us and give us good gifts.  That’s why it says in James that every good and perfect gift comes down from the father of heavenly lights.  But God might need to change us before He can bless us.  I’ve learned this lesson the hard way over many years of praying for things that I haven’t gotten and watching as God used hardships to point out why He could never give me the things that I was selfishly asking for.  Hopefully you’ll learn faster than I did.

“We also rejoice in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” Romans 5:3-4

I love this Bible verse about hope.  The reason why is because it shows where real hope comes from.  Real hope is born of suffering, perseverance, and character.  When you stop to think about it, most hope is really false hope.  Most of the things, the material possessions and ambitions we place our hope in prove hollow in the end.  That’s because real hope is something different.  Real hope is tested in the fire of perseverance, suffering, and character.  Another Bible verse about false hope really puts it into perspective.

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.” Proverbs 14:12

Most of the things we choose to put our hope in don’t really bring us to the happiness, satisfaction, and meaning that we thought they would.  That’s because real hope is something different.  Real hope that’s born out of perseverance, suffering, and character know that most of the things in this world that people spend so much time trying to attain aren’t really worth the effort.  Real hope knows that only a handful of things are really worth doing, things like relationships, loving God, and becoming a better person.