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Hasten, O God, to save me; come quickly, Lord, to help me. May those who want to take my life be put to shame and confusion; may all who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace. May those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!” turn back because of their shame. But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who long for your saving help always say, “The Lord is great!” But as for me, I am poor and needy; come quickly to me, O God. You are my help and my deliverer; Lord, do not delay. Psalm 70:1-5 NIV

Recently, I have had a very tough time at work and the challenges that have been thrown my way have weighed me down, pressured me and at times, made me want to give up. I can relate to David when he said “I am poor and needy; come quickly to me, O God. You are my help and my deliverer; Lord, do not delay.” I was so desperate for God’s help and was crying out for Him to deliver me from all the situations I was going through. I knew that only God could help and deliver me from the trials and tribulations I was going through.

But as I reflected on this scripture, I was reminded of when Jesus was thinking about the suffering He would soon have to face – dying on the cross. He said His soul was “troubled’ and contemplated whether He should ask God to “save Him from this hour” but ultimately said, “No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name!” (John 12:27–28a)

Both David and Jesus were facing pain and, in David’s words, he asked for his pain to be taken away so that God can be glorified and in Jesus’ words, He knew that He had to face the pain in order for God to be glorified. Because of Jesus and the pain He faced on the cross, we can now experience the salvation, grace and freedom from God. Sometimes, God is most glorified when He delivers us but others times, He is most glorified when we “take up our cross.”

So as I continue to face the challenges and pain through different circumstances in life, I no longer ask God to take away the suffering, rather to be glorified in every circumstance of my life. If taking it away glorifies Him – amen; if facing and overcoming it glorifies Him – also amen. God, help me to sustain that! 

Let us come before God by:

• Thanking Him for sending Jesus to face pain and suffering on the cross so that we can be offered salvation; and,
• Asking Him to use the sufferings we face in life to glorify Him and show how great He is through His works in us.