He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.
Revelation 21:4

I am the first one to admit that I do not truly understand hardship or suffering. I am also the first to admit that my life thus far has been one characterized by comfort, shelter and abundant provision. While I am deeply thankful for the ways the Lord has provided for me thus far, my eyes have drifted to those around me that suffer in ways I cannot pretend to understand. We spent some time in Future Leaders discussing suffering in the lives of missionaries Hudson Taylor and Adoniram Judson. My life has not been the same since.

The biographies of Taylor and Judson were such riveting and eye-opening accounts of two men who truly understood what it meant to live in reckless abandon for Christ. They were two men, who faced suffering, obstacles and hardship, but continued running the race because of their unshakable faith in Christ. They were two men who died to their own desires and surrendered their lives to be vessels of the Lord to live worthy of the callings they have received. Both men blazed the trail for international missions work. However, the man that truly rocked my understanding of blessed suffering and patient endurance was Judson.

Judson was the first American missionary and he spent his time in Rangoon, Burma. After a childhood of questioning Christianity and turning away from God, a host of experiences deranged his world and he could no longer ignore the truth of the Gospel, weight and power of the Almighty God and mercy of Christ. He realized his calling to be a missionary as the Lord ignited his heart to share the Gospel with a group of people in South East Asia that had never heard the name of Jesus. Judson met hardship and suffering every step of the way. His trips across the oceans were characterized by storms and sickness. He had to wait six years to see the fruit of his service and teaching in Burma. He was jailed in cruel conditions and treated brutally for months during the Anglo-Burmese War. He watched so many loved ones die to sickness and in weakness. He lost his first and second wives. He lost so many children. He watched as so many of his fellow missionaries died. There were so many seasons of darkness, depression and utter desperation in his life, and the ones previously listed do not even scratch the surface.

Yet, he pressed on to finish the race. This man was courageous. He pressed on to translate the Bible from Hebrew to Burmese. He continued to share the gospel with his Burmese community, even if though it took years to see his first convert. He also tediously worked to write an English-Burmese Dictionary for those that were to follow him. But what is most remarkable about Judson is that his courage was not founded in his accomplishments, in his goals or even in himself. Rather, his courage was founded in an understanding of who Christ really is and the unrelenting hope of the Gospel.

Thankfully, this type of courage did not die with Judson. I see courage every week. I see courage in the eyes of the families I work with, that have a child with disabilities. Yes, I see courage in the eyes of the child, but I see it even more in the eyes of the parents. I see it in the eyes of those entrusted with these precious lives, the parents that had to learn very quickly that life was no longer about them. I see it when parents joyfully squeal when they finally get the care provider they have been praying for. I see it when a dad reaches down, tells his daughter he loves her, though she cannot verbally reciprocate. I see it when a mom explains to me that the girl he has been praying for every Sunday for months is a girl they have empowered him to sponsor in Guatemala. I see it when dad physically restrains his son to prevent another violent outburst, and immediately after the melt down, showers his son with gentleness and unconditional love.

Their courage and joy is out of this world—literally. Their focus, like Judson’s, is not on their present hardships, but on a hope that can only be found in Christ and in what is to come because we are saved by grace. There is hope in a perfect Savior, who redeems us and makes us righteous before our Father. There is hope in keeping our eyes fixed on things above, to a place and time when death and mourning shall be no more. There is hope in knowing that the former things of this world, the pain, suffering, loss, tears, heart ache, separation, desperation, hunger, and sickness will all be made right when we are in perfect union with our Maker. That is hope. And while that hope does not eliminate present suffering, it unshackles its grueling and excruciating grip, and by God’s grace, we can press on to finish the race set before us, knowing that this present suffering does not compare to the glory that will be revealed in us. Until then, by the grace of God, I hope to strive to follow these examples and live in reckless abandon for Christ. And I will wait expectantly and in anticipation for the day my Lord calls me home, and on that day, the former things will pass away and there will be perfect reconciliation and union with my Father.