Doubt In Suffering

There is perhaps no more fertile soil for seeds of doubt than suffering. Suffering can produce feelings of animosity toward God, feelings of isolation, or perhaps a full-out denial of God. Psalm 46:1 says that "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." This is true, and should bring us assurance. But the working out of this truth is hard, because we are temporal people who live our lives one day at a time. God's purposes in suffering usually take time (sometimes a very long time) to be revealed, and sometimes it never is fully.