Romans 5:3
Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance…

Tonight as my family and I ordered our meal at a local restaurant, Sydney leaned in and asked me if I would order her some onion rings without onions. Yes, I just about spewed what was in my mouth, too. At least I wasn’t in front of a computer monitor!

It really was a great moment, because I could relate to exactly what she was feeling. She had just heard her brothers order onion rings, and she loves the smell of them but hates onions. Her unusual request was really her wishing she liked onions because they sounded – and smelled – so good. Of course, she wasn’t happy when I told her that onion rings were called that because, well, they’ve got onions. But let’s peel back the layers of this innocent moment for a minute and see what Sydney revealed about all of us.

I have to admit that I have heard very strong believers tell very strong stories of faith and have been enamored with the thought of having those same stories in my life. As I listen to them tell motivating story after motivating story, I want to be that close to the Lord, too. The bad news is that they usually paid quite a price in suffering to get there, and as our verse says, you can’t have one without the other.

The good news is that when we suffer, we can know that good will come of it. That’s not a reason to seek suffering, but it is a great reason to have hope in it. Soon, we, too, will speak of the faithfulness and miraculous work of our Lord in such a way that others will want what we have, too.

Of course, we’ll just smile and lovingly tell them to order the onion rings.