Read Romans 5:1–21
We know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance,
character; and character, hope.
Romans 5:3–4
Suffering builds Christian character. The sequence is: suffering—
perseverance—character—hope. Our English word tribulation comes
from the Latin word tribulum. A tribulum was a heavy piece of timber
with spikes in it, used for threshing the grain. The tribulum was
drawn over the grain, and it separated the wheat from the chaff. As
we go through tribulations and depend on God’s grace, the trials only
purify us and help to get rid of the chaff.
For many months I visited a young man in a hospital who had
almost burned to death. I do not know how many operations and skin
grafts he had during those months or how many specialists visited
him. However, the thing that sustained him was not the explanations
of the doctors, but the promises they gave him that he would recover.
That was his hope. And the thing that sustained his hope was the love
of his family and many friends as they stood by him. The love of God
was channeled through them to him. He did recover and today gives
glory to God.
Something to Ponder
What is one recent personal trial that helped make you a better, stronger
person? How can personal trials result in your giving glory to
God?