Read: 1 Peter 5:6-11
After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. (v. 10)
My father and I had a tumultuous relationship. Before he passed, I wept by his bedside. Because he was nonresponsive, as I held his hand, I asked if he knew I was there. Surprisingly, he squeezed my hand. I told him I loved him. I asked if he loved me too, and he squeezed. In my suffering, I prayed, and though he’d never communicate with me again, I knew our relationship was healed.
In today’s passage, Peter reminds us of the power of God and the temporary nature of our trials. He also affirms that strength will come from our suffering and that after our suffering, God will “restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish” us (v. 10). God empowers us to stand firm for him through everything. Truly, when we trust we will enjoy the glory of God forever, we are enabled to endure bravely and persevere through our suffering.
If we humble ourselves before God and let him restore and exalt us (v. 6) despite suffering, we will inherit glory. Hand over your suffering to God and ask him to restore you. God wants you to be blessed in him. Let him into your world, your circumstances, and your situations, and lean on him for complete restoration and healing. He will pick you up, polish you, and make you new again.
As you pray, ask God to always remind you of why he is refining you through your suffering.
Ariana D. Den Bleyker is a Pittsburgh native currently residing in New York’s Hudson Valley. She is the author of two devotional poetry collections,To Be Held by the Lightand Waking in the Light. She is an ordained deacon in the Reformed Church of America.
