“Before I was afflicted, I went astray: but now have I kept thy word…It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes…I know, O Lord…that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me.” David, in retrospect, could say affliction was good for him. And each of us, in hindsight, should be able to see affliction was to our advantage. Sometimes, we do not know what is good for us, but God always does. Affliction is one of those “all things” that works together for our good. Is it any wonder then that Paul rejoiced in them?
Plenty does not always mean richer; sometimes it leaves us poorer. In prosperity, Israel was prone to forget God. But, in affliction, she could say, “Yet have we not forgotten thee.” More times than one, sickness teaches us more than a sermon. Whatever the form or design, affliction benefits us. The Psalmist tells us the result is that we will keep God’s Word, as well as learn it. And, as an old saint said, “Who cares if the file is rough, if there’s less rust?”
Whoever brings affliction, it is God that sends it. (Thomas Watson, Puritan)
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