𝗯𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 and suffering

Many recently asked me questions concerning 𝗯𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 and 𝘀𝘂𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴. Aren’t they mutually exclusive, that you can only have one or the other? I have always believed that God is a good God who blesses. At the same time, I also believe that a godly life is a life of suffering.

Many Christians can’t handle both blessing and suffering at the same time. Just like how they struggle to balance truth and love, or faith and the sovereignty of God, or the “already” and “not yet”. They either imagine a life of endless blessing and favour that has no trial, testing or tribulation, or a life of endless suffering in which there will be no supernatural healing, deliverance or provision.

As long as we live in this present age, blessing and suffering will always go together. If we can’t accept this, we will end up being either 𝗵𝘆𝗽𝗲𝗿-𝗳𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗵 (only blessing, no suffering) or 𝗵𝘆𝗽𝗲𝗿-𝘀𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘁𝘆 (only suffering, no blessing). Both extremes are wrong! In our blessing, we must not be afraid of hardships; and in our hardships, we must continually believe God for inner peace, good health, financial breakthroughs, and kingdom revival (Jn 16:33).