Charles Spurgeon, a powerful Christian preacher in the mid-1800’s, once wrote, “The sovereignty of God is the pillow upon which the child of God rests his head.” I love the word picture of a small child sleeping peacefully upon that pillow! 

Do you know life is similar to a fairy tale? There’s the “once upon a time” with insights from the beginning of the Bible storyline. God created a world of beauty, goodness, and perfection. It was a paradise of wholeness and life; “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.”  (Genesis 1:31). 

But then came Genesis 3, where the world, through sin, contains death, suffering, decay, and pain. We are living in that fallen world now where everyone is under a sentence of death.

Thanks be to Jesus Christ who took upon Himself the payment for our disobedience and sin as He died on the cross (Romans 5:8). Jesus then rose again to life, demonstrating the total victory over the Genesis 3 world for everyone who would accept the free gift of total forgiveness. He also promises a “happily ever after” ending to everyone who would accept this gift. Romans 8:18-23 describes the believer’s ultimate hope when all creation will one day be set right and made perfect once again.

Sadly, there is no utopia now during this “in-between” time where we face trials such as prodigals, cancer, financial struggles, miscarriage, chronic disease, divorce, disabilities, death of loved ones, and aging. Everyone alive today is somewhere on the suffering spectrum. We are in the middle of the story right now in which to suffer is to share what it means to be human. 

There is a happily-ever-after coming for believers, but how do we face these big bumps and deep valleys of suffering and pain in our lives today? Even when it doesn’t make sense to our human minds, God remains God in the midst of our suffering and pain.

Without a sound understanding of who God is and His character, we may assume something is wrong or out of balance when we face trials. Understanding the attributes of God is vital to understanding who the Bible says God is.

Some Attributes of God

1. God is eternal, infinite without beginning or end. 
2. God is all-powerful (omnipotent). There are no limits to His power or authority; He is Creator, Maker, and Sustainer of all things. (Psalm 147:5).
3. God is ever-present (omnipresent). He is both within and beyond our universe of time and space; His knowledge and power have no limits. (Jeremiah 23:23-24).
4. God knows all (omniscient). He has infinite knowledge of the past, present, and future. (Isaiah 46:10)
5. God is holy. (Psalm 77:13)
6. God is a good, kind, relational being who created us to have a loving relationship with Him. Of course, John 3:16 is the best-known verse declaring that God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son’s life on our behalf.

We may assume something is wrong when we face trials or experience pain. Some search frantically for the prosperity and pain-free life they mistakenly believe is the expected Christian experience rather than moving forward, step by step, in faithful obedience with our loving Savior. It is easy for us to see God in our blessings but can we see God in our trials?

In my own experiences of suffering, I find the most comfort from the principle that God ordains and purposes these events. Not just that He allows or cares about it, but that it’s part of His divine plan. Acts 17:25-26 reminds us that God made the world and everything in it.

Sometimes we believe a sovereign God can’t be perfect in all His ways because they aren’t the ways of the God we wish He was. We may try to make God in our own image with good intentions and a caring heart but not actually in control of everything, including our trials. Even though we don’t always understand His ways, we are much safer with the God of the Bible than the god of our imagination. The truth is that God is both good and in control, and we can trust Him when suffering and pain come into our lives.

Jesus knew what it was like to be poor, to have loved ones die, to be thirsty and weary, to be misunderstood, to have enemies seeking His death, to be abandoned by friends, to be tortured and killed, and even to experience separation from God.  We can draw close to Jesus in our suffering. If anyone is suffering and weary, they can look to the Lord Jesus Christ and receive the comfort only He can give (Hebrews 4:15-16). 

Your story is written by God. Look for His presence actively woven throughout your life. He promises to be your Helper, Provider, Supporter, Sustainer, Supplier, and Burden-Bearer! Rest easy on His promises.

Scripture verses are in English Standard Version (ESV).