Suffering is a central theme of the Bible, yet it's one that occupies far too little of our time in youth ministry. Many proclaim a desire to bring the Gospel to the lost as Paul did; precious few care to join him in his prison cell. And because we ignore Jesus' call to suffer with him as he did, we also lead others astray in the area of suffering. If every teenager we encounter suffers, then suffering is a topic we have to get right when we teach, counsel, mentor, and lead. Unfortunately, I believe we get it wrong more often than not. Here are four lies we tell teenagers about their suffering:
Lie #1: Jesus will alleviate your suffering. Jesus does not always alleviate our suffering--he didn't even do it for Paul! (See 2 Corinthians 12:7-10.) Some people walk with a limp their entire lives, and it never goes away this side of heaven.
Lie #2: God is allowing you to suffer so you can learn something or be able to help someone else. I have no doubt that God uses suffering for his purpose and for the good of those who love him (Romans 8:28) and that through our suffering, we can help others. But God does not allow a woman to be raped just so that she can help another woman one day who has gone through something similar. Stop saying stupid things.
Lie #3: God doesn't give you more than you can handle. I'm pretty sure the "Bible verse" that brought us this gem is in the same passage as "God helps those who help themselves." If I could handle it, I wouldn't need God.
Lie #4: Following Jesus means less suffering. I'm not even sure were to start, expect to suggest to anyone who believes this to read the Gospels. Then the rest of the New Testament. And then the entire Bible.
What other lies do we tell teenagers about suffering?
