Our Cross: Hopeful Suffering

We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christ Church.

This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication,

redistribution, or any other use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christ Church.

Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at ChristChurchEastBay.org.

Today's New Testament lesson is a reading from the first letter of Peter as printed in your liturgy, page 2.

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ to God's elect,

exiled scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,

who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father

through the sanctifying work of the Spirit

to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood.

Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

In his great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living hope

through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

And into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade.

This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,

who through faith are shielded by God's power

until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

In all this, you greatly rejoice,

though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.

These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith,

of greater worth than gold which perishes even though refined by fire,

may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

Though you have not seen him, you love him.

And even though you do not see him now,

you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy.

For you are receiving the end result of your faith,

the salvation of your souls.

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Thank you, Brian.

Good morning, everyone.

My name is Andrew.

I'm one of the pastors here.

And I just want to ask you to join me in prayer

as we open up God's word

and hear what he has to say to us.

Lord God,

we so need you.

We so need to hear from you.

And I ask that you would

shape our hearts

to view your word

as

the bread of life that it is.

Our daily bread.

Would you fill us with your life-giving word

through the power of your Holy Spirit?

And would it be a word of joy?

A word of genuine joy

because of the good news of Jesus.

In his name we pray.

Amen.

You know, while I was reflecting on this passage this week,

right here, 1 Peter chapter 1,

1 Peter 1 · chapter mention

we're focusing on verses 6 through 9 today.

I was reminded of a funeral

that I performed about two years ago.

It was for my Auntie Lisa.

She was only 54

when pancreatic cancer

took her from, you know,

my uncle,

my two cousins,

and from the rest of our family.

And from many people

who she meant a lot to.

And one thing you should know about Auntie Lisa

is that she was like a passionate Christian.

She was,

like uncomfortably so sometimes.

She was a passionate Christian.

But no one could doubt her love for Christ.

And no one could doubt her faith in God's promises

and her desire to see other people

know and experience God

the same way that she did.

She was a decades-long BSF leader,

if that means anything to anyone,

Bible study fellowship,

a student of the scriptures.

She and my uncle

gave very generously financially

to the church,

to our church even,

when I was raising money here

as a resident.

And not only that,

but in my first couple years here,

when we had some

Chinese international students come

and visit and worship with us

and explore Christianity here,

I brought a whole bunch of them

over to our Fong family Christmas dinner.

This is my mom's side of the family.

And of course,

Auntie Lisa loved it.

She really spent a lot of time

trying to get to know them.

She independently on her own

got their contact information,

met up with them afterward,

followed up.

She really just wanted to tell them more

and more about her faith in Jesus.

But anyways,

what got me remembering

my Auntie Lisa this past week

was this line here in verse 6

where Peter writes,

in all this you greatly rejoice,

though now for a little while

you may have had to suffer grief

in all kinds of trials.

And when I saw this

paradoxical juxtaposition

of great rejoicing

and at the same time

suffering grief,

it reminded me of the day

my Uncle Gary,

Auntie Lisa's husband,

my mom's brother,

he called me

about three days

after Auntie Lisa had passed

and he called me

asking me to perform her funeral.

He told me

it would have meant a lot to her

and then he said something

that really struck me.

He said,

Andrew,

Auntie Lisa really wanted

the gospel

to be preached

at her funeral.

And I'll always remember that

because for those of you

who don't know

what the word gospel means,

it literally means

good news, right?

And maybe for those of us

Christians in the room

who've grown up in the church,

been in the church

a long time,

it's like,

of course you preach

the gospel all the time,

of course you preach

the gospel at a funeral,

but if you really pause

to think about it

for a second,

if you pause to consider

what a funeral is about,

right,

the loss of life,

the loss of a spouse,

the loss of a mother,

a daughter,

a sister,

of a friend,

of an aunt,

it shouldn't be lost on us,

it should actually be

quite striking to us,

really,

how strange

and paradoxical it is

for a woman

on her deathbed

to request that good news

be preached

at her funeral,

right?

It should strike us

how seemingly

antithetical it is

for a widower

of three days

to request

that good news

be preached

at the burial

of his beloved wife.

Some might not even

call that a paradox,

right,

but a straight up

contradiction,

an absolute impossibility.

And so this is the question

I want to consider

this morning,

can good news

be preached

at a funeral?

And not just some trite,

sentimental,

wishful thinking,

kind of good vibes,

temporary good news,

but can actual,

soul-satisfying,

heart-lifting,

hope-inspiring

good news

be preached

at a funeral?

Can great rejoicing

and genuine joy

be held

at the same time

as sorrowful suffering,

taking that sorrowful suffering

as seriously

as it should be taken?

Is this paradox

possible

or is it a contradiction?

Now,

you could probably guess

what I'm going to say,

but you know,

at least in this country,

honestly,

less and less people

are able to believe

in the possibility

of this paradox,

less and less people

are able to believe

that we can greatly rejoice

and suffer grief

at the same time.

Did you know that

in 2023,

more than 50,000 Americans

died by suicide?

50,000,

the highest number

on record,

the highest suicide rate

since during

the Great Depression

and World War II

in the 30s and 40s,

is the highest rate

since then.

That's up 36%

in the last 20 years.

And if you do the math,

that's one American,

right,

one person made

in the image of God,

created to be fruitful

and to flourish,

one person in this country

committing suicide

every 10 minutes

and 50-something seconds

throughout the year.

In 2021,

according to the CDC,

42% of high schoolers

reported persistent feelings

of sadness

and hopelessness.

22% of those high schoolers

seriously considered suicide.

18% made a suicide plan

and 10% attempted it.

One out of 10.

Couldn't believe that.

And I bring up

these suicide statistics

because I think

they indicate

that we live in a nation

and in a cultural moment

in which, again,

less and less people

can believe

that there is news

good enough

to keep living for,

hope worth waiting for,

or something trustworthy enough

to place their faith in

that things can

and will be better.

And I know suicide

is complex

and mental health

is multifaceted.

It's a multifaceted struggle.

It affects the body

and the mind.

It involves many,

many factors,

but the common theme

that runs across

every suicide,

the one thing

that every suicide

and every suicide attempt

has in common

and the most significant

and decisive factor,

in my opinion,

in every suicide attempt

is really just a person's

sense of hopelessness,

right?

Or as I might put it,

a person's lack

of better news.

This country,

the United States,

the most powerful

and influential nation

in the world,

we're undergoing

a crisis of good news.

For an increasing number

of people in our population,

the bad news

outweighs the good.

And hopelessness

seems more real

than hope.

And suffering

and shame

and sorrow

far outweigh

the joy

and the gladness

of life.

In this individualistic,

consumeristic culture

that we inhabit

where not God

but every individual

gets to determine

for themselves

what is good

and right

and worth pursuing

and where the whole point

of life

is to accumulate

experiences of pleasure

and to avoid

experiences of pain

and where we all

sweat and toil

and labor

and place our faiths

in ourselves

or in the God

of chance

that we might just

come to the end

of our lives

with more pleasure points

than pain points

in this kind

of a culture

and in this kind

of a world.

Suffering and grief

cannot have any meaning

or purpose

in that kind

of a framework.

Suffering is just

the yin to the yang

of joy, right?

The dark side

of the force

equal and opposite

to the light side.

That ominous villain

that threatens

to steal our joy

at any moment

no matter how hard

we fight against it.

So see,

according to this

prevailing spirit

of the modern

secular West,

we cannot rejoice

in suffering.

This is what

the dark spirit

of American culture

has to say,

whispering its

demonic voice

into our ears

and it's what

our neighbors

and our family members

and our colleagues

and our friends

are increasingly believing

that joy and grief

are impossible.

Impossible to experience

at the same time,

that there is no such thing

as simultaneous joy

in grief.

The paradox

is impossible.

But what does God

have to say?

What alternative truth,

what alternative reality

might He want us

to hear and believe

and live into

as followers of Jesus?

What might He be shouting

from the heavens

trying to get our attention

with,

to have our eyes open

to the possibility

of this paradox

of genuine joy

in the midst of sorrow

and suffering?

You know,

you could say

that the whole letter

of 1 Peter

exists to insist

upon this paradox

of genuine joy

in the midst

of sorrow

and suffering.

That's why we're calling

this sermon series

Elect Exiles.

Right?

Elect Exiles.

It comes right out

of Peter's introductory remarks

here in verse 1.

Peter,

an apostle of Christ Jesus,

to God's elect

exiles scattered.

This is how He identifies

these suffering Christians

scattered across

what we know

as modern-day Turkey.

He identifies them

as living paradoxes,

as those who are elect,

that is chosen

and loved by God,

treasured and precious

in His sight,

and yet at the same time,

exiles.

Religious minorities,

afflicted and oppressed,

suffering persecution,

socially and economically

disadvantaged misfits,

foreigners,

pilgrims

in their own home.

So throughout this letter,

we're supposed to feel

this,

this both-and feature,

this tension

of the Christian identity.

We're supposed to feel

the tension

and the complexity

and the nuance

of being loved

and held secure

in God's perfect plan

and purposes,

while also keeping it real

about the grief

and the suffering

and the trials

that even God's beloved children

face and experience,

sometimes precisely

because they are His children.

Peter invites his readers,

even challenges us

to embrace this paradox

and to live into

our paradoxical identities

as elect exiles.

Elect exiles

who are able to paradoxically

celebrate good news

at a funeral.

Elect exiles

who are paradoxically

able to rejoice

and grieve

at the same time

and without contradiction.

But now,

where might this ability

come from?

How do you rejoice

even while you suffer grief?

So in verse 6,

picking up from where

Jonathan left off last week,

Peter writes,

in all this,

you greatly rejoice.

And when he writes,

in all this,

the all this he's referring to,

which gives cause to rejoice,

it's all the wonderful things

that Jonathan preached about

last week in verses 3 to 5.

Praise be to the God

and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

He's given us so many things.

He's given us mercy.

He's given us new birth,

new creation identities.

He's given us a living hope

rather than a dead hope.

He's raised Christ from the dead

and along with all that,

he's given us

an imperishable inheritance

that we cannot lose.

It's kept in heaven

and salvation is on its way,

as it says in verse 5,

to be revealed in the last time.

Peter is saying,

in all that,

you greatly rejoice.

But now notice something with me.

Notice how in verses 4 and 5,

sure there's this

imperishable inheritance

waiting for us in heaven

and this salvation

to be revealed

at the end of time

that's coming.

There are all these things

in the future

for God's children

to look forward to, right?

This living hope.

It's a future focus.

But then here in verse 6,

Peter doesn't write,

in all this,

you will greatly rejoice later

or eventually.

He writes in the present tense,

in all this,

you greatly rejoice.

Like right now.

Even though now,

for a little while,

you may have had to suffer grief

in all kinds of trials.

So the question is,

how can we rejoice now?

In the present?

When we're still waiting

for our inheritance

and our final salvation

to come?

What kind of authentic rejoicing

can we enter into now

in the midst of grief

and trials

when all the good stuff

is said to be in the future?

And this is a critique

that many people have

of Christianity, right?

That it's just like

a pie-in-the-sky religion

and just so spiritual

and otherworldly

and future-focused

that it does no good

for anybody

in the real world

and in the here and now.

So what does Peter have to say

in response to such a critique?

How can he be so confident

that his readers

have reason to rejoice

in suffering now?

That we have reason

to rejoice

in our suffering now?

Well, the first thing

he says in verse 7

is that contrary

to the consumeristic,

pleasure-seeking,

pain-avoiding spirit

of our age,

which would have us believe

that suffering

is just an unfortunate,

purposeless interruption

in our lives,

like a wasted chapter

in our stories.

Peter says no.

Peter says that no suffering

is ever meaningless,

purposeless,

or ultimately ending

in doom and destruction

for those who place

their faith in Christ.

He says in verse 7

that we can rejoice

through suffering and grief

because such suffering

and grief,

though of course awful

and agonizing,

such grief can still be used

by God to refine our faith

is what he says.

As it says in verse 4,

like gold refined

in a fire,

only better.

A refining process

even more valuable

because a refined faith

is far more valuable

than a chunk of gold, right?

And I've seen this in my life.

I've seen this in many

of your lives.

The hard things

that you've been through,

I've seen it.

For those of you

who've suffered tragic losses,

even while recognizing

how terrible

those losses have been,

has not God

refined your faith

in him

and his promises?

Has he not drawn you

closer?

And I'm not saying

that it justifies

your suffering

or makes your suffering

okay or not so bad,

but has God

not used it

to refine your faith

and to draw you

closer to him?

In all those moments

of loss

and instability

and insecurity,

when we lose our jobs,

when we face disappointments

in our relationships,

when our health

fails us,

when our kids

don't turn out

the way that we dreamed,

our faith is refined.

It's refined

and it's proven genuine.

While all these things

we hold onto

and place our faith in

are ripped out of our hands

by the suffering

that God puts

into our lives.

It's through suffering

that God applies

his burning fire

to our compound,

amalgamated faiths,

full of so many impurities.

He purges them

from us

so that we stop trusting in

and depending on

all the thousand other things

that cannot actually

hold us up

and sustain us

through our seasons

of suffering.

That's the value

of a refined faith.

Like, Peter's not just

commending a refined faith

to us

so that we can just

have something nice

and shiny

to look at

and brag about.

No, a pure

and refined faith

is a faith

that holds more tightly

to Jesus

and therefore

lets go

of all the other

false gods

and false messiahs

and shaky hopes

that we're all

so drawn to

but that will only

ever inevitably

lead us

to destruction

and let us down.

Tim Keller likes

to use this illustration

a lot

of the lumberjack

and the bird

in the forest.

There's this lumberjack

who knows

that every tree

is about to be

cut down

but he notices

a bird building a nest

in one of those trees

and he doesn't want

her labors

to go to waste

or for her eggs

to get destroyed

so out of compassion

he shakes the tree

he rattles it

and the bird

is terribly disturbed

and annoyed

and frustrated

and she moves

to another tree

only for the lumberjack

to go and shake

and rattle that tree

as well

until she moves again

and this goes on

and on and on

and by the fourth

or fifth

or tenth tree

the bird is looking down

and sees the lumberjack

as an enemy

right?

an unnecessary nuisance

and the bird

cannot understand

why the lumberjack

won't just leave her alone

to rest in all these trees

that seem perfectly

like perfectly good places

for a nest

and to lay eggs

but the compassionate lumberjack

will not let her

place her faith

in any of these trees

that are about to come down

and he shakes

and disturbs

every single one

until finally

the mother bird

flies away

from all the trees

and begins to build

her nest

on a high

strong rock

which she actually

finds to be far

superior

a far superior option

that she wished

she started with

in the first place

and then all the other

mama birds

begin to do the same

because they see

how secure she is

on that rock

and how she

and her baby birds

are thriving

this is how God

uses suffering

in our lives

to refine

our faiths

to purge

the untrustworthy

things

that we place

our trust in

and when we have

eyes to see

that that is what

he's doing

with our suffering

that is how we can

rejoice

in our suffering

even now

even in the present

because we know

he's drawing us

nearer to him

it doesn't make

the suffering

easy or okay

or even justified

but we can rest assured

that the result

of this refining

of our faith

as it says in verse 7

is ultimately going to result

in something amazing

praise and glory

and honor

the praise and glory

and honor of Jesus Christ

and ours as well

when the spirits

of this age

tell us to build our nests

in this tree

or that tree

but God shakes us

again and again

until we build

on the solid rock

of Christ

even when it's

less conventional

and less comfortable

and harder

and more costly

the result

is that Jesus

receives praise

and glory

and honor

our refined faith

brings glory

to Christ

the supreme object

of our faith

a refined faith

bears witness

to the world

that Jesus

is enough

that Jesus

is better

and that he

is a higher

more solid

and more trustworthy

rock

than any other

there is no God

like him

and this is what

a refined faith

looks like

in verse 8

according to Peter

this is what it looks

like he says

though you have not

seen him

you love him

and even though

you do not

see him now

you believe

or better

it could be translated

you have faith

you place your trust

in him

and are filled

with an inexpressible

or unspeakable

and glorious joy

for verse 9

you are receiving

the end result

or the goal

of your faith

the salvation

of your souls

that's what a refined

faith looks like

according to Peter

but you know

I struggled a lot

as I came to these

last two verses

8 and 9

thinking about

how to teach

and apply

this part of the passage

for us today

because how do you

commend this experience

that Peter's talking about

in verses 8 and 9

how do you commend

and apply that

to someone

how do I get someone

to love and trust

someone they haven't

seen

someone I haven't

even seen myself

how do I convince

people of this

unseen person

to the point

where they're filled

with inexpressible joy

glorious joy

and faith

and to the point

where they're experiencing

the salvation

of their souls

as a Christian

I could say

that this is something

I've experienced

and I know

that many of you

many of us

have experienced

this as well

what Peter describes here

many of us

do love

and trust Jesus

even though

we haven't seen him

and many of us

can attest

to this inexpressible

glorious joy

that he's filled us with

but we also know

that it really is

an unspeakable joy

an inexpressible joy

it's hard to describe

it's hard to communicate

it defies purely

rationalistic

categories

of explanation

and understanding

like somehow

while we haven't seen him

with our physical eyes

somehow many of us

have still

beheld him

with the eyes

of our heart

somehow

to use Paul's language

but I totally get

how this could sound

super weird

and super spiritual

and super like

religious

and pious

and just not accessible

and difficult

to relate to

if you haven't

experienced it

and honestly

there's no special

argument

that I could share

nor technique

that exists

that can automatically

like instill

this kind of faith

in you

it's really a gift

as Jesus said

to the doubting Thomas

blessed are those

who have not seen

and yet have believed

it takes being born again

by the Holy Spirit

it takes faith

to experience this

it takes faith

to be able to

preach good news

at a funeral

and to rejoice

in the deepest grief

it takes faith

to accept

that this paradox

is possible

but where does that

leave us now

today

particularly for those

of us who struggle

with faith

whether you struggle

to believe

and accept

the future promises

of God

about the living hope

of the resurrected Christ

the salvation to come

the imperishable inheritance

that he offers

or whether you struggle

to believe

in the present promises

of God

that we can rejoice

in suffering

right now

and that God

can use our present

suffering

to refine us

and draw us

nearer to him

where do we go

from here

you know there's a

very simplistic

method of Christian counseling

that drives me crazy

that would

just kind of

it's a very condemning

method of Christian counseling

and don't worry

we won't ever send you

to any of those kinds

but basically

they would just

rebuke you

and command you

to believe harder

right

try harder

have more faith

just stop

not trusting

and believing in God

like just stop it

right

stop your sin

of unbelief

right now

stop it

but I've never really

seen this work

I've never seen it work

and I think it's because

this method is more

of an authoritarian

guilt based

and moralistic

appeal to the will

or at least

the human willpower

when really what's needed

is something that will

capture our hearts

so I don't have a technique

I don't have an argument

that will instill faith

in you

but I have something better

I have the Holy Spirit

and I have the gospel

to preach

and what I'd like to do is

instead of

filling you with guilt

I'd like to

preach a positive

vision

a compelling vision

for you

so that even if you

cannot see him

you might

behold him today

and I want to suggest

to you

that Jesus

is the only one

that can make sense

of the paradox

presented in 1 Peter

the only one

who can make sense

of good news

at a funeral

and of rejoicing

in the midst

of grief

the prototype

of an elect exile

Jesus is

see as far as I can tell

every other alternative

to the good news

about Jesus

either ends up

downplaying grief

and sorrow

and suffering

as natural

or just not that bad

or

it offers hope

that's either

an over promising

lie

or just not good enough

to bring any meaningful

and lasting hope

so for example

sometimes in the face

of death

and suffering

people might say

or at least be thinking

well it was

this person's time

right

she's returned

to mother earth

and there goes

the circle of life

and basically

what they're saying

is that death

and suffering

are natural

and a normal

part of life

and not really

something

to be that grieved

over

right

or they might

say something like

well at least

the pain is gone

at least their

suffering is gone

and at least

you know

many members

of the family

survived

but that's to say

well it's bad

but it's not

that bad

not the absolute

worst case scenario

right

or on the other side

some might say

at a funeral

that you know

oh so and so

so and so

is in a better

place

you know

maybe they're

reincarnated

as something amazing

in another life

but they don't know

that

it's just wishful

thinking

or maybe they might

say something like

well this person

lived a good life

and we should

celebrate his time

on earth

as if that's the

best that we could

ever hope for

and then that's it

but do you see

how flat

and one dimensional

and how lacking

in gravity

and seriousness

and hope

and joy

these responses

are like all

at the same time

death and suffering

demand

our bitterest

grief

because every being

every human being

is made

in the image of God

and so there is

really no more

fitting response

to death

and suffering

than absolute

grief

and sorrow

apart from

the gracious promise

of God

to make all things

new hopelessness

and despair

and suicide

actually make sense

to grieve over

death and pain

is to acknowledge

that this is not

the way things

were meant to be

grief even honors

the goodness

of God's original

creation

and the grievous ways

it has gone wrong

ever since humanity

turned its back

on God

if we see

death and suffering

for what they

really are

in the light of

God's intentions

for the world

and in the light

of Jesus Christ

and what he came

to do

Christians of all

people have

the most reason

to grieve

because we confess

the devastating

effects of a

fractured relationship

with God

on the entire

creation

and the infinite

cost it would

take to restore

it

according to the

story of Christianity

to grieve

this broken world

is the most human

thing we could

possibly do

and at the same

time the most

God-like thing

we could possibly

do

the God of

Christianity

doesn't indulge

the lie

that brokenness

and death

are not that bad

he grieves it

with an immeasurable

passion

and he sends

for its healing

the most radical

solution

right

the son

his son

he sends

for his son

to be crucified

on a cross

that's how bad

it is

it's really

the bitterness

and the horror

of the cross

that's the measure

of the despair

we should feel

in this broken

world

and if we have

eyes to see

how bad things

really are

then surely

no wishful thinking

no myth

no legend

no temporal

celebration

of life

can ever overcome

or even match

our despair

right

but listen

and this is the gospel

Jesus can overcome

that despair

Jesus can

and he has

Jesus crucified

for the sins

of the world

and risen

in the flesh

in history

not a mere myth

tons of verifiable

evidence

Jesus and Jesus

alone

can overcome

our despair

and the wreckage

of sin

and suffering

and he has

so he and he alone

can make sense

of the paradox

he's the only way

we can rejoice

in suffering

he's the only way

because he himself

rejoiced

even in the worst

suffering

the death

and torture

of the son

of God

he who for the joy

that was set before him

endured the cross

despising its shame

was seated

at the right hand

of God

it's only because

of Jesus

and only in his story

of suffering

subverting good news

it's only in and through him

that we can weep

with those who weep

and recognize

the awful stench

of sin

and suffering

all around us

in all their darkness

and despair

it's only in and through Jesus

that we can face

the truth

about how terrible things

are

and yet still

get out of bed

day after day

knowing that he can

and will make

all things new

knowing that salvation

has already broken

into history

starting at the empty tomb

it's only in and through Jesus

that we can rejoice

in faith

with inexpressible

unspeakable

glorious joy

because we are

even now

receiving the end result

of our faith

the salvation

of our souls

the salvation

of the whole

of our lives

both now

in this age

and beyond

because of our union

and communion

with the risen Christ

see Jesus

preserves

the paradox

he makes it possible

and better than that

he makes it

beautiful

and that is the gospel

and that is why

our joy

is unspeakable

it doesn't make sense

it's inexpressible

because it's a paradoxical

joy

that can only be found

in the crucified

and risen Christ

crucified

for us

raised in glory

and we with him

when we follow

in those steps

let's do that

Christchurch

will you pray with me

Lord God

would you make us

speechless

before you

unable to articulate

the greatness

of the mercy

and grace

that you have

poured out upon us

in Christ

would you make

us people

who embody

the inexpressible

unspeakable joy

that is full

of your glory

would that be

so evident

in us

as we meditate

upon

who your son is

and what he's done

for us

Lord make this

a place

a church

where we can

be real

about the hard

things in our lives

and in this world

even dramatically

real

God

because

this world

is so broken

and sin

is that bad

and suffering

is that unnatural

and so far

from your design

and from your heart

but Lord

at the very same

time

would we bear

that unique

witness

as Christ's

followers

to the joy

that we have

that only we can

have

through grief

and suffering

make us that

kind of beautiful

unique witness

to the world

for the glory

of Jesus

and the good

of our neighbors

it's in his name

we pray

amen

to the glory

to the glory

to the exemption

to the Jeff

and say

to

of our

son

and

thank you

I wear

love

and

we be

to the

Dios

and

to

our

family

is

Ins員

to the

liken

Walt

�

an

Sony

Set