Renee Masterson Young’s Reviews > When God Weeps: Why Our Sufferings Matter to the Almighty > Status Update

Humility puts suffering in its proper place, God becomes everything

Our suffering always looks different when we are removed from it—it helps us see differently, gives us new perspective. Paragraph on 199 🔥

Coming through the valley makes us different; better, stronger, wiser 200

“…the ‘we’ God intends us to be as a result of suffering emerges when we ‘welcome trials’” 201

All our suffering is far less than what we actually deserve & we’d do well to ponder on our reality apart from Christ. Joni’s ch on hell is 🤌🏽 praise God for eternal life

“Hardships is our bit & bridle” that keep us at Christ feet 183

Without suffering, we start to wander into self-absorption—our suffering is a great kindness for forgetful hearts this side of Heaven

Rhetoric in this is 🔥

Ch 11: Gaining Contentment
what a great perspective shifter

Can we really rejoice in our suffering? Can we really be content in spite of circumstances God allows in our life?

A resounding yes—contentment is something we learn, we must practice, not denying our reality but “adjusting longings in light of Christ’s sufficiency” 173

“Gain always comes through loss” 175

So much scripture, good exegesis

“Affliction either warms you up toward spiritual things or turns you cold…”and lukewarmness is the only road that never gets to God” (151). Big emotions help us ask hard questions.

Love Joni’s emphasis of God’s sovereignty and consequently giving endless rhetorical questions that help feed logical train of thought. Really good to think through them.

I like that she finds no suffering insignificant.

Joni applies the gospel to our sufferings so beautifully—reminds us that there is strength in suffering alongside one another; that it’s even better to suffer with Christ (and how all suffering, not just suffering for Christ, should be applied to suffering verses in Bible); suffering increases our capacity for God; that all suffering needs to be viewed in light of the cross to make sense

Life through Joni’s eyes is reorienting, straightforward, comforting, helpful.

Loved the analogy of suffering & sculpting

“I cannot afford to focus on the hammer and chisel. I cannot look around me and bemoan what God is chipping away…Turn your focus on him, trusting that he will never cut or gouge too deeply…God is not a casual or capricious Sculptor…He promises to be precise with the chisel”(116-8)

Ch 5 “All Trials Great & Small” is a must read for every Christian woman

We limit God profoundly.

“Unless the Bible is wrong, nothing happens outside of God’s decree. Nothing good, nothing bad, nothing pleasant, nothing tragic…We may not fathom God’s reasons, we may not agree with his thinking, we may love him of it, we may hate him for it. But in simple language, God runs the world” (76).

“Our call to suffer comes from a God tender beyond description. If we do not cling to this through life’s worst, we will misread everything and grow to hate him”(40).

“…in God’s wisdom and love, every trial in a Christian’s life is ordained from eternity past, custom made for that believer’s eternal good, even when it doesn’t seem like it. Nothing happens by accident…”(56).

Chapter 4 🤌🏽

We are often uncivilized & flawed in our view of God. We are convinced that to be healed of our suffering is happiness, is what God wants for us. Suffering brings pain, but also intimacy and a greater joy than any removal of suffering.

God means suffering for our good, his glory. He gives good gifts & suffering is one of those. God knows what we don’t & works for his good end. It’s not trite, it’s biblical.