Break Time--Heaven Is Not For Wimps!

A Meditation on Psalm 23 and Suffering

Most parents will do everything they can to shield their children from suffering. Nobody likes to see someone else suffer—especially children. We live in a culture where we are taught to avoid pain at all cost. But Christians should learn from a very young age to face pain and suffering head-on and not try to run from it. 

Some Christian parents make their kids memorize Psalm 23 and it is one of my favorite Psalms. How nice to lie in green pastures and rest beside still waters! To be restored and have a table of food set before us. Ah…it’s like a life of retirement, right? 

But after reading the first two verses, we tend to just skim over the middle two verses to get to the end where we are dwelling in the house of the Lord forever. But the middle two verses are all about the journey of our lives. The Shepherd leads his flock in paths of righteousness. That sounds good, right? But the path of righteousness leads right smack into the valley of the shadow of death. And that is where we live our whole lives—in the valley of the shadow of death. 

Let’s read the Psalm.

The Lord Is My Shepherd Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

    He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters.

    He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness

    for his name's sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

    I will fear no evil,

for you are with me;

    your rod and your staff,

    they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me

    in the presence of my enemies;

you anoint my head with oil;

    my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

    all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord

    forever.

Did you notice that the “path of righteousness” passes through the “valley of the shadow of death”? In this life, we live in the shadowlands. 

What is the “shadow of death” anyway? We all know what death is. It is loss of life. The “shadow of death” covers all the different kinds of loss and suffering we experience in this life. Every time we lose something, we experience the “shadow of death.” 

It could be the loss of something we possess like a house or a car or a smart phone. 

It could be the loss of a pet. 

It could be loss of our health. 

It could be the loss of a best friend. 

It could be the loss of a marriage or family or the loss of a child. 

It could be the loss of a job. 

It could be the loss of fellowship and love—being excluded or hated or shunned by other people.

It could be the loss of all our hopes and dreams.

It could be the loss of anything we love or need. 

These are all like a death to us and we suffer greatly because of them.

Know this, children:

If you are going to follow the Good Shepherd of Psalm 23, he will lead you into suffering! 

Look at what Jesus says to his disciples in Matthew 16:24—“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” 

Whoa Nelly! The cross is a symbol of intense torture and death. We have to be willing to suffer the loss of life to follow Christ. It is a test of our faith and our faith must be tested to see if it is steadfast. Only those who remain steadfast, only those who endure to the end will be given the crown of eternal life. 

That is why suffering is grace! 

We should never be afraid to face pain and sorrow and suffering head-on. We know that through suffering, Christ is making us the kind of people who will be able to live in heaven. 

HEAVEN IS NOT FOR WIMPS! It requires a particular kind of person with a particular kind of soul. Heaven is for people who do the right thing even if they have to suffer for it! People who avoid doing the right thing because it makes them uncomfortable will never be fit for heaven. Jesus uses suffering to expand our souls, so that in heaven our souls are capable of carrying the weight of joy we will experience there. The more you suffer on earth, the greater your capacity for joy in heaven. You see? Suffering is grace. Outrageous, scandalous grace! 

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,  for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.  And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing…  Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” James 1:2-4, 12

A TASTE OF HEAVEN