"Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." (Hebrews 12:7-11)

This is an incredibly important and comforting passage, one that I return to again and again. (Actually, I'd recommend all of verses 1-13). It sheds light on the purpose for our suffering: it is not because God hates us or we are rejected by him, but rather the opposite: we are his chosen and dearly loved sons, and he is committed to doing whatever he can to deal with the sin in our lives and bring about his righteousness and holiness.

Just a quick list of some of the results of God's discipline:

• To deal with sin in our lives
• To make us more like Jesus
• To cause us to rely on him more
• To cause us to know him more

However, this doesn't have to happen. The difficulties in a non-believer's life don't have these results, and they don't have to in our lives either. The key factor is our response to God's discipline.

How do we respond to suffering in order to produce godly results?

The key really is faith. Here are some thoughts:

• Remember the Father's love. Remember Romans 8:28. Remember that he loves us deeply and that he has PROMISED to work everything out for our good, including this trial. His heart does not change when we go through suffering. Nothing can separate us from his love.
• Refuse to give in to the temptation to grow bitter and to blame God or grow angry at him. Trust his heart. Thank him, as much as you can, even for this trial. Worship him, as much as you can. Worship is a powerful force against the enemy. This doesn't mean denying the pain, it just means telling him you still believe he is good in spite of it. You can be honest with him about how you feel, and about how it doesn't seem to make sense. He is your Father.
• Don't give in to the temptation to believe that your suffering is random and/or meaningless. You are a child of the living God. Your trial has been ordained by his sovereign hand, for your good. It is not random, it is not meaningless, it is not purposeless. He knows the end and the beginning.
• Don't give in to the temptation to think "what if" or fantasize about how things could have been. Accept it as it is. Face it realistically, and don't attempt to numb the pain (an ungodly response). Grieve if you have to.
• Submit to God and resist the devil (James 4:7) Wait with patience for the trial to be over.
• Remember that it WILL have good results. Remember that no matter how painful it is now, the pain will pass and you will look back, understand it better, and thank God for it. Remember that the end result, should you choose to trust God and obey him through it, will be "a harvest of righteousness and peace".