God has shown time and again that his standard protocol for ailing or suffering ones is not to relieve or cure them by miracle but to help them develop endurance, for endurance itself is a Godly trait.
“But after you have suffered a little while, the God of all undeserved kindness… will himself finish your training. He will make you firm, he will make you strong, he will firmly ground you.” (1 Peter 5:10)
“But God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear, but along with the temptation he will also make the way out so that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13)
“Consider it all joy, my brothers when you meet with various trials, knowing as you do that this tested quality of your faith produces endurance. But let endurance complete its work so that you may be complete and sound in all respects, not lacking in anything.” (James 1:2-4)
But did not Jesus perform miracles as when he cured the blind, the lame ones, the mute and deaf, as well as lepers? Why not hope for miracles too these days? Well, Jesus did make many sick people well. But did he cure all the sick?
Apparently, what he performed are but demonstrations of what he will do on a grander scale when his time is due to rule as king in his kingdom over all the earth. (Isaiah 35: 5-7; Revelation 21: 3-5) It will be the time when God will definitely answer our prayers that his “kingdom come”, that is, for his heavenly government to “crush and put an end to all these kingdoms” on earth, thus ending human rule that has brought millennia of suffering for mankind. (Matthew 6: 9, 10; Daniel 2:44)
Pray for wisdom
It is clear from the Scriptures that among the things God want us to pray for is wisdom – divine wisdom as well as practical wisdom for solving some of our common problems.
“So if any one of you is lacking in wisdom, let him keep asking God, for he gives generously to all and without reproaching, and it will be given him. But let him keep asking in faith, not doubting at all…” (James 1:5, 6)
“Safeguard practical wisdom and thinking ability; they will give you life and an adornment for your neck… for Jehovah will prove to be your source of confidence.” (Proverbs 3:21,26)
Is it wise on God’s part to always answer every prayer with miracle solutions served on a silver platter? Has he not gifted man with intelligence far superior to that of animals? Therefore, does he not expect us to use that gift to find solutions to our concerns both big and small? For if God will shield us from every trial and miraculously save us from every danger – whether physical, moral or spiritual – will it serve in the end to make us stronger, wiser and more self-confident?
Just as the constant use of our muscles will make us stronger, and the constant use of our mental ability will make us wiser, so too our constant exposure to temptations and our unwavering efforts to overcome them with our adherence to Godly behavior will eventually strengthen our moral fiber.
By not making life problem-free for us but instead, letting us face life’s challenges, does not God provide us valuable training in endurance and faith-building?
Still, we are assured that after allowing us to suffer for a time, God himself will “finish our training.” (1 Peter 5:10) That is, he will ultimately end our suffering, and that in the end, “he will find a way out” for us.
Yes, as a loving father, God will not allow us “to be tempted beyond what we can bear.” (1 Corinthians 10:13) What he needs to find out is how much we trust him. That whatever may come, we will prove true to our faith and not turn our backs on him.
How God answers our prayers
When Moses told God he could not speak directly to Pharaoh of Egypt and ask him to free God’s people, the Israelites, because he was poor in speech – and apparently lacking self-confidence – did God transform him outright into an articulate speaker?
Instead, he appointed Moses’ brother Aaron to be his spokesman to Pharaoh. Apparently, Aaron was a much articulate and bold speaker. And that worked out well for Moses.
At another time, Moses had felt spent trying to judge all the cases and problems brought to him by the Israelites who numbered more than a million or so. Did Jehovah instantly give Moses superior wisdom? As the account says, Moses got an unexpected but apparently God-given advice through his father-in-law Jethro.
Jethro told him: “But you should select from the people capable men fearing God, trustworthy men hating dishonest profit, and appoint these over them as chiefs over thousands, chiefs over hundreds, chiefs over fifties, and chiefs over tens. They should judge the people when cases arise, and they will bring every difficult case to you, but every minor case they will decide. Make it easier for yourself by letting them share the load along with you.” (Exodus 18:21, 22)
What lesson did those incidents teach us? That God often uses other people to come to our rescue.
When Paul got shipwrecked in one of his long missionary journeys, native inhabitants of Malta where Paul’s ship hit the rocks showed him and his fellow survivors extraordinary kindness and hospitality, promptly attending to them with food and shelter. (Acts 27:22-44; 28:1-6)
(For comments, e-mail mcsucquitjr@yahoo.com)