Suffering, Humility & Integrity

“God’s work… is accomplished most incisively through suffering” (Athanasiadis, George Grant and the Theology of the Cross, p. 44).

Here’s another quote that I think is SO important in any kind of community, especially a Christian one:

“… a direct connection is seen between suffering and the maintenance of religious integrity” (“Humility”, International Dictionary of the Bible).

I believe this is true. I’ve seen it over and over again: those who suffer are more likely the ones with true spiritual integrity. Those who live a life of denial and escape from suffering, usually couched in the religious language of triumphalism, positivism and prosperity doctrines, often lack that integrity. Living through the suffering, not without it, is the Christian call.