That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection,
and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; (Phil 3:10)

The one constant prayer in my life has been “I want to know you Lord.”
I’m certainly not the first to pray such things.

It was said of Tozer that his desire was to
“love God more than anyone in [his] generation”.

Moses said to the Lord, “Show me your Glory”.

But how do we “know” God more intimately and more deeply?
How does one’s love for the Lord grow in intensity?
How do we see His glory?

In many ways, but suffering seems to be paramount.

It is in suffering, that we come to know the power of our God.
It is in suffering, that we experience the fellowship of our great Comforter;
It is through suffering, that we begin to understand and appreciate
the suffering of our Lord — to enter into that fellowship, that intimacy with Him.

Jon Courson says “If you want to be a deep person, you must go through deep things.”

It’s true.

And if you want to deeply know, love, and experience the power of the Lord —
He will one day take you through suffering.

It’s not to be feared. It’s a cause for intimacy with the Lord.
And that — is the pursuit of my heart.

One response to “More on Suffering”

  1. Jen Higgins Avatar

    “I want once more to tell you how good He is, how blessed it is to suffer with Him, how infinitely happy He has made me in the very hottest heat of the furnace…There is no wilderness so dreary but that His love can illuminate it, no desolation so desolate but that He can sweeten it…I beleive that the highest, purest happiness is known only to those who have learned Christ in sickrooms, in poverty, in racking suspense and anxiety, amid hardships, and at the open grave. To learn Christ, this is life!” -Elisabeth Prentiss

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