Suffering, Failures, and Grace

I came across two bits of information today that curiously relate to one another. I enjoy listening to NPR on occasion as I drive to and from work. Today I heard just a snippet from the show Fresh Air with Terry Gross where she relayed that she would be replaying an old interview later in the broadcast. This interview was with a renowned gay-rights activist who had committed suicide just last Friday. I didn’t hear the interview, rather I heard, and quickly put in my memory, the host’s interpretation of that suicide. She said of his death that “he took his own life, unwilling to be further debilitated by his failing health.” This was staggering to me. This interpretation is unacceptable. A person must not be said to be in the right when he takes his own life because of his presumed suffering. Human life is just too precious. I cannot imagine how frightening the prospects of his suffering must have been, but this should never be legitimate grounds for taking life.

The other bit I came across is this, from 2 Corinthians 12: “But [the Lord] said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” A great blessing of discipleship is knowing that our Lord provides in every season. Every weakness, every failure, every hardship, every bit of suffering is an arena for God’s grace to be displayed. If you're reading this and you're not someone who claims to be Christ's disciple, I wonder, how do you face your sufferings? How do you face your weaknesses? Christ Jesus gladly offers his grace if you would only come to him, forsaking all else but him.