Trials and Tribulations: Their Limits and Benefits
Trials and Tribulations: Their Limits and Benefits
No human life—whoever the person may be—is free from trials and tribulations. They are for everyone, a right even for the prophets and saints. There are many examples, among them what Job the Prophet and Joseph the Righteous endured.
Therefore, no one should think that trials and tribulations are only for sinners because of their sins. Rather, they are for all people. There is a difference between a sinner who suffers a hardship because of his mistakes, and a righteous person who is struck by affliction because of the evil or envy of others, or for any reason beyond his control.
All the righteous passed through the furnace of pain, and experienced affliction and temptation, and God did not exempt them from this.
“Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all” [Psalm 34:19].
The occurrence of these trials does not at all mean that God has abandoned those upon whom these troubles and tribulations have come. Nor do they mean His anger toward them or His dissatisfaction with them.
Rather, blessed be His name, He may allow the trial for their benefit. And He is with them in the trial, helping them, strengthening them, preserving them, and supporting them as well.
He permits the tribulation, but He stands with us in it.
Thus the psalmist sings in the Psalm, saying: “If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, when men rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us alive, when their wrath was kindled against us… Our soul has escaped as a bird from the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken, and we have escaped. Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth” (Psalm 124:2–8).
It is a beautiful experience: to see God’s help during our tribulations.
And to experience God’s tenderness, His love, and His work on our behalf. This is one of the benefits of trials, in which we feel that some heavenly powers stand with us and defend us, and we also experience the saying of the Psalm: “The Angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them” (Psalm 34:7).
For this reason, tribulations cannot truly weary the believer. This is because he believes in God’s intervention, work, and preservation. He believes that God is able to solve them, and indeed that God has many solutions. Therefore, the believer does not lose his inner peace during trials, nor does he lose his reassurance and trust in God’s work.
Every trial is undoubtedly an opportunity for a new spiritual experience, deepening a person’s understanding of God’s care, work, and salvation.
Yet God, in His compassion and tenderness, has established certain rules for the tribulations He allows to occur. Foremost among them:
- God does not allow a trial beyond our human capacity
He, in His great power, knows the measure of endurance of each one of us, and He does not allow trials to come except within the limits of one’s human capacity. Someone may ask: How severe was the trial that befell righteous Job—in the death of his children, the loss of his wealth, the loss of his health, and the abandonment of his friends. Who could endure all this?
We answer that God knew that Job’s spiritual strength was able to endure all this, and therefore He allowed what happened.
As for you, do not fear. If you were at the spiritual stature of Job, you might be exposed to similar trials. But God does not allow you to be tested except within the limits of your endurance.
- The second condition is that God does not allow tribulation without also providing a way out
The problem comes together with the solution. There is no trial that is utterly dark without any window of light. There is no room for despair. The solution exists, though it may require some time, granting the person experiencing the trial the virtue of patience and waiting on the Lord. He looks at the problem with hope, seeing the solution by faith coming through God’s love and power. And God is able to grant endurance and patience.
- We should also know that the trials God permits are for good or end in good
“All things work together for good to those who love the Lord”.
Even if the problem appears evil in itself, God in His goodness is able to turn it into good. Thus the believer believes in the goodness of trials, whether at the time or afterward. For this reason, trials do not crush him, pressure him, or rob him of his peace. I often used to say: “A tribulation was called a tribulation because the heart became too narrow to contain it; but the spacious heart is not distressed by anything”.
- A fourth condition of trials: they have a defined time in which they end
There is no permanent tribulation that continues throughout life. Therefore, in every trial you go through, you can say: “Its destiny is to end.” A time will come when you pass through it safely. But during this time, you must preserve your calmness and composure. Do not weaken or collapse, do not diminish yourself before the trial, and do not lose confidence in God’s intervention, help, and preservation.
And know that trials are undoubtedly beneficial. Were it not for their benefit, the compassionate God would not allow them. How many virtues we can gain if we deal with tribulations in a spiritual way.
They strengthen the soul and grant it many kinds of experiences, whether in dealing with problems, or in hope and faith in God’s work, or in the wisdom acquired by those who have experience, or in training in steadfastness and firmness before tribulation until it ends, along with training in endurance and patience.
Without entering the furnace of trials, souls would become fragile and pampered, unable to endure anything, and untrained in facing and enduring hardships.
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