Suffering

"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light." Matthew 11:28-30

I do not know one person who has not experienced either now or in the past some type of suffering or affliction. "My soul is deprived of peace; I have forgotten what happiness is." Lamentations 3:17. Every creature on this earth has had or will have suffering during the course of their lives. Some of these crosses are inevitable, some are self-inflicted due to the choices we make and some we endure because of the choices of another person. Unfortunately, there are some crosses that seem to be harder to bear than others. I know from my own personal experiences with affliction that suffering changes people. It causes the fountains of humility, remorse, and compassion to flow. Suffering is meant to transform us for our salvation. Our sufferings can also transform and impact the people around us for their salvation as well. Even though this is true it is still important for us to form the practice of uniting our suffering with that of Christ's sufferings on the cross and offering it up to the Father. Another good practice is to offer your sufferings up as penances for your sins, for the sins of your family members, for the sins of the world and for the holy souls in Purgatory. These acts of reparation are so powerful against the attacks of the evil one because they bring us closer to our Lord. One thing to remember is that in every suffering person Christ is there suffering in them and with them. Saint Padre Pio said that Christ suffers in the poor but in the poor and sick Christ suffers twice.

Quotes on Suffering

"Each man, in his suffering, can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ." -Pope John Paul II

"The suffering of this life not only can make our temperament more like the Divine Personality of Jesus, but it detaches us from this world. This Divine preparation opens our souls to the working and pruning of the Father." -Mother Angelica

"There are no crown wearers in heaven that were not cross bearers on earth." -Spurgeon

"God will either shield you from suffering or give you unfailing strength to bear it." -An excerpt from the prayer "Be at Peace" by St. Francis de Sales

"God whispers in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain. It is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world." -C.S. Lewis

The following are two excerpts from the "Salvifici Doloris" On the Christian Meaning of Human Suffering written by Pope John Paul II :

"And Christ, through His own salvific suffering, is very much present in every human suffering, and can act from within that suffering by the powers of His Spirit of truth, His consoling spirit."
"Thus to share in the sufferings of Christ is, at the same time, to suffer for the kingdom of God. In the eyes of the just God, before His judgment, those who share in the sufferings of Christ become worthy of this kingdom."

Inspirations from the Bible

"We are afflicted in every way, but not constrained; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being given up to death for the sake of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh." 2 Corinthians 4:8-11

"For this momentary affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to what is seen but what is unseen; for what is seen is transitory, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Prayer in Time of Suffering

Behold me, my beloved Jesus, weighed down under the burden of my trials and sufferings. I cast myself at Your feet that You may renew my strength and my courage while I rest here in Your presence. Permit me to lay down my cross in Your Sacred Heart, for only Your infinite goodness can sustain me, only Your love can help me bear my cross, only Your powerful hand can lighten its weight. O Divine King, Jesus, whose heart is so compassionate to the afflicted, I wish to live in You, suffer and die in You. During my life, be to me my model and my support. At the hour of my death, be my hope and my refuge. Amen.

Prayer in Honor of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
(St. Augustine)

God of our life, there are days when the burdens we carry chafe our shoulders and weigh us down; when the road seems dreary and endless, the skies gray and threatening; when our lives have no music in them, and our hearts are lonely, and our souls have lost their courage. Flood the path with light, turn our eyes to where the skies are full of promise. Amen

The following link is to a video discussing suffering and unhappiness titled
"Message of Hope"
from Catholic Familyland.

I strongly urge you watch this video!

It will change the way you see your life!

The song on this page is Kyrie eleison from the album O Lux Beatissima. Kyrie eleison is a Latin term which when translated to English means "Lord have mercy".

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