God’s Kindness to Us When We Suffer

Do you ever feel like your suffering negates God’s kindness? Just as in the garden of Eden, is our lying enemy making you think our powerful and glorious King is more of a punishing tyrant with His children, rather than our kind Father? Are you struggling to reconcile your suffering with God’s kindness?

Let’s battle Satan’s lies together, beloved in Christ. Let’s interrupt our suffering with praise to God for His kindness, in order to fight the lies!

God’s Kindness When He Led Us to Jesus

God says He’s abundantly, plentifully kind (e.g. Ps. 145:7-8), often translated as lovingkindness. He also says, “Do you presume on the riches of his kindness…not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?” (Rom. 2:4). There’s a clue! God’s kindness led us to Jesus, in repentance. God’s kindness shows us we need Jesus.

Thy loving-kindness, Lord, is good and free:

in tender mercy turn thou unto me;

hide not thy face from me in my distress,

in mercy hear my prayer, thy servant bless.

(“Thy Loving-kindness, Lord,” Hopkins, E. J., 1869)

Remember the good news of the gospel? At the cross, Jesus took the entire punishment you and I deserve as sinners, born as “children of wrath” into this fallen world of sin (Eph. 2:3). But look at the good news in this next verse!

In His loving-kindness, He saved us! God made us His adopted children, through faith in Jesus (Rom. 8:15-16; Gal. 3:26). Even more amazing in His kindness to us, Jesus’ perfect righteousness was imputed or credited to us (Rom 3:21-26)! He gave us a “new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:24 ESV)! We’re suffering but, as those in Christ, we’re in the kind hands of our loving Father…today.

God’s Kindness in Leading Us Close to Jesus as We Suffer

Because Jesus is God, we see God’s kindness in action as we read about Him in the gospels. Just as Hosea describes, we see how He bends down and feeds us, how He cares for us as we suffer. Remember, He is our good shepherd!

What are some of your favorite stories about what Jesus did as He walked the earth? How did He show His kindness to His disciples? Let’s slowly sink into this next truth, beloved!

So, is it possible that, somehow, today’s suffering is part of His kindness toward us because we are in union with Christ?

Could it be that He’s kindly pulling us nearer to Him in suffering? Kindly helping us see a deepened need for Him? Tenderly leading us to re-turn to Him once again? Kindly drawing us to seek His voice in Scripture?

Oh, how kind He is to bring us back to the cross of Jesus, where we always find His grace and kindness!

With joy the meek shall see my soul restored;

your heart shall live, ye saints that seek the Lord;

he helps the needy and regards their cries,

those in distress the Lord will not despise.

God’s Kindness in The Riches of His Grace 

We have the “riches of His grace,” receiving the kindness of God, today and forever. What great hope! As in all of His attributes, God’s kindness is unchanging and eternal. Dear sister, let’s remember His kindness toward us today, as we suffer. The reward is great! In today’s pain, let’s ask the Holy Spirit to show us His kindness as we reflect on our sure inheritance. For we will live with our always-kind God forever.

Let heaven above his grace and glory tell;

let earth and sea and all that in them dwell;

salvation to his people God will give,

and they that love his name with him shall live.

But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life (Titus 3:4-7 ESV). 

Material adapted from Near to God: A Devotional Bible Study of God’s Character in Our Suffering, Lauri A. Hogle. Copyright © 2022, Singing Christ’s Hope. 

A playlist to sing to God, as we suffer

Friend, we are both suffering in this fallen world today. As the hymn cries, we are indeed needy and sorrowful. So we need Jesus, Who fully empathizes with our need and our sorrow. Jesus walked this sin-infested earth to experience the fullest of needs and sorrows, for you and me. So, let’s sing-pray to our always-kind Lord and Savior today.

Needy and sorrowful, to thee I cry;

let thy salvation set my soul on high;

then I will sing and praise thy holy name;

my thankful song thy mercy shall proclaim.

Every week, I professionally curate a YouTube playlist with lyrics so we can sing to the Lord. In my own suffering with chronic illness, it has been God’s kind and compassionate gift to sing to Him, so it’s my delight to share the music with you.

This week, we’re singing of His kindness, shown to us in Jesus Christ and His work on the cross. We’re praising God for His loving kindness, even singing through tears of need and pain. I’ve discovered that He does “set our souls on high” as we thank Him in song, such a wonder of His kindness to us! If this would bless you, sign up here and I’ll send the music to you with prayer, as we journey heart-to-heart as suffering sisters in Christ.

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