Suffering

DEVOTION
EPHESIANS
SUFFERING
Eph 3:13
13 I ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory.
NIV
What do I do with this verse? I surely cannot expect others to suffer for me. Or is it I should suffer for them? Maybe it simply implies that when one of us does suffer the others should not get discouraged over it. I do know that some people suffer and I am not sure if I could ever say I have suffered or not. But here I have to ask about the cause of suffering. I know I have made some bad choices in the past. I have made some not so good decisions which caused a lot of stress in my life. Was that stress suffering? If it was it was at my own hands and not that caused because of the Gospel. I think this is at the root of this passage for me. If I am going to suffer for others it has to be because of the Gospel. I cannot claim every time I suffer it is God’s fault or his will. I surely am able to cause my own self to suffer by the choices I make all by myself. I cannot blame God for my bad choices if those cause suffering in my life. Now having said that I do not really think I have suffered, at least to the extent Paul is speaking about here. I have not been placed in prison because I am out preaching the Gospel as an outlaw to the established church. I do not even think I have suffered because I disagree with much of the established church and its system. I am not sure I have ever suffered because of my relationship with Christ. I know some people have not liked me very much or maybe thought I was a bit overbearing in my faith. I know some people may think I am too much with trusting God, that I am so heavenly minded I am not any earthly good. I know some people think I am foolish to trust God when it comes to money, investing, saving, and storing up for future days and the like. Do I suffer because of it? Maybe I suffer not having their friendship. Maybe I suffer because they think or speak poorly of me. It is bad that I do not care? I am going to follow what I see as the plain truth of God. I am going to be true to what he says to me and if that is suffering for the sake of the Gospel then so be it. I will be glad to suffer for that.