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2 Corinthians 1:3-7
2 Corinthians 1:3-7
“Don’t waste a good hurt.” It’s a phrase my supervising pastor on my internship often used to say.
It’s kind of a strange saying. I mean what is a good hurt? Is there such a thing? As strange as it is, there is a deep, meaningful truth in this saying. It’s the same truth we hear in our scripture today from 2 Corinthians 1.
It was a good reminder of what a privilege it is to enter into the hard spaces of life with other people — and this is exactly where God calls us to be.
We see this in our scripture passage for this week:
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. 6 If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. 7 Our hope for you is unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort.
2 Corinthians 1:3-7
Suffering is not a fun thing. It’s a reminder that things aren’t the way they’re supposed to be in this world. It fills us with questions. Why me? Why now? Why this? It’s hard to find meaning in suffering in this world. But here, Paul points to the truth that though suffering is not good, we have a God who can bring good through our suffering.
This is what my pastor meant when he said, “Never waste a good hurt.” It’s not that the hurt, the suffering, the sorrow is good, but it’s a realization that God can bring beauty and goodness and growth through those moments.
Paul says one of the beautiful and good things that God brings in those moments is comfort. He brings comfort through His loving presence and unfailing promises. He’s a God who has suffered the worst this world has to offer — look at the cross. He’s a God who sees our suffering and meets us in it. He’s a God of promises that overcome and go past our suffering and give us hope for the future. In times of suffering, turn to God, and He will comfort you.
But Paul points to another beautiful and good thing that comes through our suffering and the comfort that God brings. In experiencing those hard moments and God’s comfort in them, God gives you and me the opportunity in the future to bring comfort to others. When others are in the midst of pain and suffering, whether it’s like ours or not, we can bring the comfort, hope, and Good News of a loving God and His promises. We can be God’s loving presence to listen, to weep and to mourn with them, to sit in silence with them, to give a hug and hold a hand, and to point them to the hope that is found in Jesus. We can remind them that they’re not alone or forgotten for God loves them and cares for them and is walking with them. And when we do, we experience the beauty of how our redeeming God takes a horrible thing like suffering and brings good from it.
God of All Comfort
This is an amazing privilege and honor, and something we should not shy away from. So, don’t waste a good hurt. God pours His love, comfort, and hope into our lives in our hard moments so that we may be filled and pour it out to others in their time of need. Today and everyday, let’s seek to be a tangible presence of God’s love, comfort, and hope to those who are hurting in this world.
As you consider this scripture and reflect this week, respond to the following questions:
1. How has God brought comfort to you in your suffering? Were there certain people he used?
2. How might you use your experience of suffering and God’s comfort to bring comfort to others? Is there someone that God brings to your mind that you might be able to share God’s comfort with this week? Take action and reach out.