St. Augustine wrote, “God had only one Son without sin; he has no sons without suffering.” Likewise, the Apostle Paul, one of God’s most faithful servants, had to live with intense physical pain.
Three times he asked God to relieve it but it was not taken away. However, he does not surrender to a negative attitude of self-pity. There is no note of bitterness or complaint in his 13 letters in the New Testament. Paul’s attitude gave new meaning to old scars.
Attitude is always important. A captain going through a field hospital once saw a young soldier who had lost his leg. The captain knelt down and consoled the boy, “Son, I’m sorry you lost your leg.” The soldier replied, “Captain, I didn’t lose my leg—I gave it.”
That’s a triumphant spirit Christ can give. Don’t go through suffering sulking in self-pity. Christ can help us rise above it.