Why Do Pain and Sadness Come to Us?
(Ex. 14:5~18)

The Israelites who left Egypt, following the guidance of Moses who was the servant of God faced great danger. There was a sea in the front, and the army of Egypt was chasing after them. They faced a dilemma. For the past one year, we faced various hardships in life. However, we must give thanks to God by knowing that sufferings that are allowed by God are always beneficial to us.

1. There must be darkness for the light to emerge
1) The light is revealed when there is darkness. Without darkness, the stars cannot shine. (Isa. 45:7)
2) Sufferings and sorrow in life make faith toward God even stronger. (Eccl. 7:14)

2. The peace and joy that come after suffering
1) The Israelites lived a rough life in the desert for forty years. After spending time in the desert, the descendants entered the promised land of Canaan. (Deut. 8:2~3)
2) There is a good purpose of God in sufferings. God delivers us from sufferings. Through this, He makes our faith stronger. In addition, if we pass through sufferings, peace and joy prepared by God await for us. (Ex. 14:31)

3. To get a new life
1) In order to get a new life, we must invite Jesus who suffered for us. Just as when winter passes and the whole world changes beautifully by being filled with vitality when spring comes, if we received the spirit of life of Jesus, vitality will overflow in our life. (John 10:10)
2) If we accept Jesus, we become one with Jesus. Jesus’ death will be my death. Jesus’ resurrection will be my resurrection. Jesus’ ascension will be my ascension. Jesus’ heaven will be my heaven. In Jesus, we must change our thoughts, dream dreams, have faith, and make creative declarations. (2 Cor. 4:10)

Conclusion
We can truly meet God if we enter into the fourth dimensional world from the third dimensional world. We who believe in and live with Jesus can enjoy peace and joy no matter what kind of situations we face. During this time today, we want to praise and give thanks to God who was always with us for the past one year.