In his letter to the Romans, St Paul writes: “Brothers and sisters: I consider that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed for us.” St Paul states that although creation is groaning in pains of growth and labor, we human beings already have the first fruits of the Holy Spirit with us. While we know this as a truth of our faith, that the sufferings of this world are nothing compared to the glory of God, nothing compared to the new life we will have with Christ when we enter eternal life, it can still be difficult for us to bear the burdens and sufferings we have here on earth. St Paul says that it is this hope that will sustain us, that will get us through the sufferings of life. We can lift our sufferings up to the Lord and unite them with all that Christ endured on his way to the cross. We can find meaning and growth in our sufferings.
We all know someone in our community of faith or our family or at work or school who is perhaps going through a sickness or illness, through a lot of pain and suffering, or struggling with a terrible addiction or mental illness. We stand in solidarity with all those who suffer. We unite our prayers together, lifting them up to the Lord. Let us always place our hope in the Lord.
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