We are being sanctified through our suffering. One of the chief ways that God grows His people is through suffering. The writer of Hebrews ties together the suffering that the Hebrew Christians are enduring with the loving chastening of God (Heb. 12:3-11). They were tempted to turn back to a ritualistic religion that avoided suffering, but God was using the suffering to keep them close to Christ. So it is with all the challenges and hardships that we are called to endure.

I recently received an email from a missionary couple in our congregation who serve in a large country in Africa. The wife of this couple who wrote us was telling us how her husband had been arrested and falsely accused so that the government of the country in which they serve could get bribe money–a fairly common practice in this country when it comes to Western missionaries. After telling us about the heartache and grief that they have endured, she mentioned that they were reading the book of Acts when he was arrested. After he was released and is now awaiting a court decision, this beloved sister in Christ mentioned that when her husband was released and returned home he said to her, “I wasn’t beaten like Paul and Silas. Perspective is key.” This is a phrase that I have found myself saying over the past several months. It’s all about perspective. As I consider the many discontent and complaining spirits of both ministers and people alike in the church in America, I wish that I could take this couple’s situation and words and etch them on the hearts of us all. Here are seven thoughts on perspective that will help us stay the course in ministry and to learn contentment:

1. We deserve eternal judgment. Whatever situation we find ourselves in, we must always remember that we should be in Hell right now and forever. Whatever situation God has placed us in, we can be confident that it is an unimaginable kindness compared to what we deserve. This helps me keep things in a proper perspective. Instead of complaining that we wish we had an easier or more fruitful pastorate, or that we, as congregants, wish that we could get our way on this or that matter in the local church to which we belong, we should remember what God has rescued us from through the death and resurrection of His Son.

2. We belong to Christ. Whatever undesirable situation we may be enduring, we must remember that “we have been bought with a price,” and that “we are not our own” (1 Cor. 6:20). Our faithful Lord Jesus has us right where He wants us. We belong to Him and He will never make a mistake in placing us in the situations in which He places us. This helps us keep perspective when we endure hardships.

3. We are blessed if we suffer for Christ. When Paul and Silas were beaten for their faithfulness to Christ and His mission to preach the Gospel, the Holy Spirit tells us that when they were finally released, they were rejoicing because “they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name [of Christ]” (Acts 5:41). They knew that they were men who belonged to Christ by virtue of His redeeming work and that He had called them to the high honor of suffering for Him. This helps us keep perspective as we go through the hardship.

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