Life has its beautiful moments and its ugly moments. It has taken me a while to embrace them both. See, I was the one who did all I could to escape the nasty moments and bask in the beautiful moments. I had experienced so much pain and suffering in my early years of life that I thought that was enough to last me a lifetime, but as you might know, that wasn’t the case.

See, the Bible tells us in Ecclesiastes 3:1-11 that there’s a time for everything under the sun, and I thought my ugly days had come to an end since I had experienced many seasons of ugly moments. Still, I was wrong, and the nasty moments would continue to play a part in my life and lead me where I needed to be. At the time, I didn’t know those bad moments were building me up and would lead me to share how Jesus transformed my life through the trials and tribulations I had to endure.

Why couldn’t I heed the pull I felt from God? I wanted to do things my way. I don’t know why that was so baffling to me when I was the one being defiant and didn’t want to live the life God had planned for me. After surrendering my ways to God, I learned that those ugly moments were there to teach and strengthen me. I am thankful for those moments since their outcome was to help others.

If I had to experience those moments again, I would do so without complaining, for I know they were orchestrated for a divine purpose.

I don’t know too many individuals who like to endure pain and suffering constantly, but it’s what Jesus had to endure during His ministry on Earth. He suffered through hatred, ridicule, beatings, and crucifixion for people who would not accept Him or His Father God, who sent Him.

So,when I am going through those not-so-beautiful moments, I am in good company. I can never compare my life with Jesus’s, but I know Jesus had to suffer, so as His follower, I don’t know why I wouldn’t share the same suffering as He did. He tells us in His word that we will experience suffering like He did, and I can finally say I am okay with that.

My mission is to glorify the one who sacrificed His life for me, and if suffering is part of the journey, then I would gladly do so. That’s a small price compared to the one He made on our behavior when He died on the cross for us. Jesus was a spotless lamb with no blemishes but to save us for eternal separation from God, who took upon our sins so that we may be clean and enjoy eternal life with Him. The spotless lamb became spotted for us, and I am forever indebted to Him.