Worth the Pain

“They strengthened the spirits of the disciples
and exhorted them to persevere in the faith, saying,
‘It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships
to enter the Kingdom of God.’”

Acts 14:22

Have you ever done something you really wanted to do while knowing that you’ll have to pay for it later? Maybe going skiing for the first time in years knowing full well that the next day you’ll feel pain all over? Or staying up late with a group of old friends talking and hanging out even though you have an early and long day in the morning? Or maybe leaving someone or letting someone go as much as it pains you because you know it’s what they need and will help them in the long run? We make sacrifices for the things and people we love, even when it hurts us. What or who is worth the pain to you?

St. Paul was stoned and dragged into the streets and was left there to die. For what? For proclaiming the truth, for telling others about Jesus. That is how much he was in love with the Gospel. Not just love but in love. Brothers and sisters, we may “love” many things — food, movies, hobbies, etc., but we probably won’t be willing to get beat up and left for dead for them, right? But we are willing to get beat up and left for dead for someone who we are in love with or who is in love with us. Then and only then will we be willing to lay down our lives. St. Paul believed that Jesus and the Gospel was worth the pain. Jesus believed that His apostles, even though they fled and abandoned Him, and we are worth the pain and suffering He endured. Is Christ and the Gospel worth the pain to us?

We can say that we love Jesus, but are we in love with Him — of course not in the romantic sense of the word? Are we so in love with God and the Gospel that we are willing to endure pain for suffering for Him? Oh, also, the Gospel is not a thing or a book, it is a Person, the Gospel is Jesus Himself, the Word made flesh. When we spend time with Scripture, we are spending time with Jesus. When we proclaim and spread the Good News, we are bearing Christ to them, and that is why we are called Christians.

St. Paul and Jesus believed that we were worth the pain. Do we? St. Paul told the people, “It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God.” Are we willing and ready?