Are you willing to offer yourself up and bear all the sufferings God will send you?

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AServantofGod

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I thought I understood God’s view of suffering. Offer it up! Offer it up! Now, however, I am beginning to realize that there is more to it.

After reading Catherine Anne Emerich, St. Therese of the Child Jesus, and about the children of Fatima I realize that God wants more. Catherine Anne Emerich and St. Therese actually asked for sufferings. I thought it was good enough to just accept sufferings. As for the children of Fatima, they were asked if they would bear the suffering which God would be pleased to send them. They were given a choice to suffer more.

It seems as if God would be pleased to send me more sufferings if I just said, “yes, I will bear all for the conversion of sinners and in reparation for sins.” And through this act of selflessness I would do more good than simply accepting what comes my way.

Any thoughts on this?
 
Dear friend

Everything is a blessing.

God Bless you and much love and peace to you

Teresa
 
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AServantofGod:
It seems as if God would be pleased to send me more sufferings if I just said, “yes, I will bear all for the conversion of sinners and in reparation for sins.” And through this act of selflessness I would do more good than simply accepting what comes my way.

Any thoughts on this?
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I read one saint who said, “If we knew the value of suffering, we would ask for it.” (I think it was St. Teresa of Avila, but I’m not sure.) Anyway, after I read that I felt particularly motivated to ask Him and I received. There is a common phrase, “Be careful what you ask for.” My suffering didn’t come in the form I imagined. It came as wrongful accusations against me and an annoying skin rash. The skin rash I could handle, but I didn’t handle the accusations as the noble saints I like to read about handled their suffering. I crumbled under the mental anguish and asked God to take it away, and He did.

I’d like to be strong enough to ask Him again some time. But for right now it seems I need to learn to accept the sufferings He does give me without complaining. Maybe once I learn to do that, I can move onto something greater.
 
Isa 1:25 And I will turn my hand to thee, and I will clean purge away thy dross, and I will take away all thy tin. (DRB)

If you ask God to purify you then you will be asking to suffer, on the otherhand, if we don’t suffer in this world than we will in the next.
 
If you honestly try to follow the teachings of Christ, you will endure plenty of suffering. People just can’t deal with a person who is not attached to material possessions, motivated by selfish interests or worldly-imposed sanctions and rewards, non-judgmental of any other human being, or otherwise conditional about loving. If you such a person and have any reasonable amount of social intercourse, you will undoubtedly find all the suffering you wish.

Most of my own suffering is mental, not physical, but even with mild pain such as headaches, I try to “learn” the pain, thank God for it, and even become amused at it, because I think of all the good things for Christ that the particular pain can’t stop me from doing. A couple times, I think satan just gave up on me because my headache just went away (or who knows, maybe the Holy Spirit intervened??) Problem is, after such a victory I keep thinking I’ve done something good, which gives me a boost of pride and then soon and very soon I end up undergoing another test. Just from revealing this I’m certainly boasting at least as much as sharing. Sheesh. Pride’s a tricky thing.

Alan
 
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AlanFromWichita:
Just from revealing this I’m certainly boasting at least as much as sharing. Sheesh. Pride’s a tricky thing.

Alan
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Dearest Alan

Good to see you here.

What you have said is true, so say less.

God Bless you and much love and peace to you always 🙂

Teresa
 
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springbreeze:
Dearest Alan

Good to see you here.

What you have said is true, so say less.

God Bless you and much love and peace to you always 🙂

Teresa
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Gosh that sounds simple. Of course you are right, but it isn’t what I wanted to hear. 😦

Thank you for caring. Maybe I’ll pull myself away from this dumb computer for a while and wash some dishes.

Alan
 
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AlanFromWichita:
Gosh that sounds simple. Of course you are right, but it isn’t what I wanted to hear. 😦

Thank you for caring. Maybe I’ll pull myself away from this dumb computer for a while and wash some dishes.

Alan
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Alan,
We aren’t perfect…our “fallen natures” do us in everytime…Pick yourself up and keep on going… God only asks us to be faithful and obedient… Think of the prayer of St. Ignatius of Loyala…
"Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,
my memory, my understanding, and my entire will.
All I have and call my own.
Whatever I have or hold, you have given me.
I restore it all to you and surrender it wholly
to be governed by your will.
Give me only your love and grace
and I am rich enough and ask for nothing more."
 
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AlanFromWichita:
Problem is, after such a victory I keep thinking I’ve done something good, which gives me a boost of pride and then soon and very soon I end up undergoing another test. Just from revealing this I’m certainly boasting at least as much as sharing. Sheesh. Pride’s a tricky thing.

Alan
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i know exactly what you mean by this and i think it is couragous to admit the sin of pride–but there’s that trickiness–I say you’re couragous and it is a compliment and it is meant for you–but how the receiver of a compliment deals with it is where pride shows his ugly face.

My trouble is when the same thing happens to me (I’m complimented) I have difficulty immediately recognizing that all goodness is from God–It is so difficult to empty oneself of the desire for praise and to offer all praise given to us to Him who really generated our gifts.

I look at my beautiful children and see them as mine rather than God’s–though I know they are His alone–I am simply positioned to serve them–to come more closely to Christ through the mothering of these children. That is the same kind of pride. I think it’s the struggle to see it clearly that is the point of offering ourselves to the Lord–the struggle is the gift because we can unite more fully with the Suffering Servant-Jesus.

(I hope that made sense–I was being the suffering servent to my 3 year old while I was typing this)
 
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AlanFromWichita:
Gosh that sounds simple. Of course you are right, but it isn’t what I wanted to hear. 😦

Thank you for caring. Maybe I’ll pull myself away from this dumb computer for a while and wash some dishes.

Alan
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Oh Alan, it’s a compliment to you, you recognise the pitfalls of pride and so few do!

God Bless you and much love and peace to you

Teresa
 
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springbreeze:
Oh Alan, it’s a compliment to you, you recognise the pitfalls of pride and so few do!

God Bless you and much love and peace to you

Teresa
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I know; it was the kindest thing anyone could have written to me at the time you did. One kind word from you and my swelling pride popped like a big zit. People could have lectured me all day and accomplished less. I cried for a half hour. It may not have seemed like much to you at the time, but it meant a great deal to me.

Yes, I did get the dishes done! Then I went back to the old house with Julie and half the kids and got lots of work done in the yard, cutting up a huge limb that got hit by a recent storm and packing it onto at trailer, until it started to storm and we had to quit. Honestly, that’s the kind of thing I need to be doing more of, and I feel very satisfied for having gotten it done. I’ve been putting it off for over a week, mostly in good weather.

Nothing like a good chainsaw session to get back into the swing of things! 🙂

Annunciata and st_felicity, thank you also for the kind words. I’ve spent some time reflecting on how crazy this “pride” thing can be and it gives me a whole new respect for those who take a vow of silence.

Alan
 
In my case, I think the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. God tends to send me trials when I need them, and I’ve even occasionally asked for Him to send me the trials he wants me to endure. I at the same time ask Him for the grace to endure it. I don’t do this often, because I usually find myself begging Him to relieve me of my sufferings when they get bad. There have been a few moments where I genuinely accepted and embraced suffering and even chose it for His sake, but these moments have been so few and so short-lived that I usually am afraid to ask Him for trials because I know I will not bear up under them very well.
 
Grace and Glory:
In my case, I think the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. God tends to send me trials when I need them, and I’ve even occasionally asked for Him to send me the trials he wants me to endure. I at the same time ask Him for the grace to endure it. I don’t do this often, because I usually find myself begging Him to relieve me of my sufferings when they get bad. There have been a few moments where I genuinely accepted and embraced suffering and even chose it for His sake, but these moments have been so few and so short-lived that I usually am afraid to ask Him for trials because I know I will not bear up under them very well.
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I understand this for this is how I am. I think it’s sad. I feel like such a spiritual wimp some times.
 
I let God do the choosing about my suffering. Here are a couple of points from St. Josemaria Escriva’s classic book, The Way, which I find helpful:

Steps:
To be resigned to the Will of God
To conform to the Will of God
To want the Will of God
To love the Will of God

and

Jesus, whatever You want, I love.

Betsy
 
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baltobetsy:
I let God do the choosing about my suffering.
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Me too.

Since there is already so much suffering in the world, instead of praying for additional suffering, why not pray for God to show you how you can relieve the suffering of others?

Crazy Internet Junkies Society
Carrier of the Angelic Sparkles Sprinkle Bag
 
I am willing to offer myself up and bear all the suffering God sends me! For you My Lord, I accept all.

Sometimes though, It is so hard but when I do sincerely, something extraordinary always happens. It is Gods way of saying, “Thank you.”🙂
 
I’ve been having severe pain on and off for the last year and recently it has been more frequent, right now it has lasted for well over a week. I don’t know what it is, but it is in my stomach and then it spreads from there to my back etc. I didn’t ask for it, and I don’t want it, I asked God to take it away, but He hasn’t. If it doesn’t go away very soon I think I will have some sort of mental breakdown. How does this fit in with all the stuff you guys are talking about?
 
I do not believe God sends suffering to anyone. I do believe he permits it.

I am recovering from Lung Cancer and I don’t believe God had anything to do with it. I developed this suffering myself, with my lifestyle. That is not to say that folks who do not smoke gets lung cancer and other ailments. I simply do not believe they are sent by God.

Read the New Testament and then decide. Jesus came and healed folks who suffered. He hated suffering and took great pity in the suffering. Why would that be if He sent it to us?

If we endure suffering, you can either pray for God to heal as He did while walking this earth and has since or you can decide it is in some way holy to suffer. I would think Jesus would have allowed folks to be holy and not cure them.

Well that is only one womans opinion.
 
I don’t think anyone wants pain. But in life we suffer from emotional and physical distress that burdens us to no end.

By taking that suffering and accepting it and offering it up for the intentions of Our Heavenly Father, or the souls in Purgatory or conversion of sinners or our family or penance for our sins, we are uniting our suffering with those of Jesus. Jesus offered His death for us sinners.

By offering up our pains, we are respecting the Will of God and I feel we receive enormous graces for our acceptance in a kind and humble way.

Jesus told us to take up our Cross and follow Him. It is a truly beautiful (and very difficult) sacrifice we can do for Him.
 
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