Gospel Resilience

Living in a fallen world means an experience with suffering—disappointment, trouble, illness, death, and losses of varying degrees are intertwined with the joys of life. Some people have less, others more, but suffering is a common touchpoint for each of us. Entire fields of study and practice are focused on understanding the effects of suffering and how to live well with (or despite) it.

Resilience is being “able to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions.” Our local hospital has signs along the highway through the city with motivational affirmations: “We are resilient,” “You can walk again,” and so on. Sheer willpower can reorient our thinking and even change circumstances, but the effects are limited and don’t meet the needs of the heart and soul.

James Pennebaker, a research psychologist, discovered that a key variable in whether one developed resilience was the story people told themselves about their experience. Two people could experience similar suffering yet have very different outcomes depending on whether they assigned meaning to it. The good news is that an objectively true story has already been written, and it shapes and gives meaning to every detail of life. We do not need to invent meaning—the gospel gives actual meaning and context, and when believed, it generates hope in desperate circumstances, as evidenced by Paul (2 Cor. 4:7–11). Letting the redemptive story of Scripture frame our story, combined with an experiential relationship with the Lord, is key to the Christian’s resilience.

Biblical truth acknowledged in the mind but disconnected from the heart quickly detours to bitterness or stoicism. In contrast, David in the Psalms gives us a helpful pattern to bring the truths of the gospel to bear on our experience.

Lament: David never minimizes suffering but gives witness to it. He shares details with honesty and brings his feelings of confusion, grief, and desertion to the Lord. Lament is an expression of trust that God hears, cares about, and will deliver us. “Pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us” (Ps. 62:8).

Remember: You can sense a pause after David laments, as if he were lifting his head from his hands and lifting his eyes to the horizon. He shifts to praying about God’s promises and character. “Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds” (Ps. 36:5). He actively remembers God’s past deliverances for himself and His people corporately, which generates fresh hope.

Praise: Renewed with hope, David moves to resolve and praise. Anxiety and sorrow are still present, yet praise simultaneously exists. It is often when we are carrying heaps of sorrow that our hearts realize great relief and rest in Christ. Our great burden-bearer sustains, comforts, and will save us completely (Heb. 7:25).

What a gift that we do not need to summon up our own strength, but as we rely on His, it generates joy and hope as we persevere, looking to Christ (Rom. 5:4).