"Trouble Don't Last Always" by Dr. Kenneth Sullivan Jr. (11/23/2025)

When Trouble Comes Knocking: Finding Hope in Life's Darkest Moments

Life has a way of delivering unexpected blows. Sometimes they come as whispers of disappointment, other times as thunderous waves of devastation. The reality is simple yet profound: every single person will face trouble. It's not a question of if, but when.

The ancient wisdom of Job reminds us that anyone born into this world will experience days filled with trouble. Jesus himself acknowledged this truth, telling his followers that in this world they would face tribulation. Yet embedded within that acknowledgment was a promise—a reminder that he had already overcome the world.

The question isn't whether trouble will come. The question is: how will we respond when it does?

The Art of Perspective

In the apostle Paul's second letter to the Corinthians, we find a remarkable testimony of resilience. Paul doesn't hide his struggles or paint over his scars. Instead, he opens up about the trials he's endured—beatings, imprisonment, abandonment by friends, and a mysterious "thorn in the flesh" that plagued him continuously.

Yet despite cataloging these hardships, Paul makes an astounding claim. He writes: "Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal."

Read that again. Paul calls his severe trials "light affliction." He describes suffering that would break most people as something that lasts "but for a moment." How is this possible?

The answer lies in perspective.

Paul had trained himself to look beyond the immediate circumstances to eternal realities. He compared his earthly troubles to the glory that awaited him and found that when placed side by side, his problems seemed small. This wasn't denial or toxic positivity—it was a deliberate choice to view his life through the lens of eternity rather than the limitations of time.

Three Truths About Trouble

When we examine Paul's testimony more closely, we discover three essential truths about the troubles we face:

First, our troubles are short in span. What feels permanent right now is actually temporary. The darkness you're walking through has an expiration date. The financial strain won't last forever. The grief will eventually soften. The season of loneliness will give way to connection. Just because you're experiencing hardship now doesn't mean this is your forever reality.

The enemy of our souls wants us to believe that our current circumstances define our entire future. He wants the walls to close in until we feel suffocated, without hope, convinced that nothing will ever change. But that's a lie. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.

Second, our troubles are small in size. This doesn't mean they're insignificant or that the pain isn't real. Rather, it means we often magnify our problems while minimizing the power of the One who can solve them. We look at our challenges through a microscope, making small things appear enormous, when we should be looking at them in comparison to an infinite God.

Consider the difference between a microscope and a telescope. A microscope makes tiny organisms appear massive. A telescope reveals that what looks like a small dot in the sky is actually larger than our entire planet. When we magnify our problems, they overwhelm us. When we magnify God, our problems shrink to their actual size.

The psalmist understood this principle: "Oh magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together." The more we lift God up, the more he lifts us out of our circumstances.

Third, our troubles are significant in substance. Here's the paradox: while our troubles are temporary and smaller than they appear, they're also producing something of eternal value. Paul writes that our afflictions are "working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory."

The Greek word Paul uses here means to accomplish, achieve, bring about, work out, and produce. Our troubles aren't just something we passively endure while gritting our teeth. They're actively accomplishing something. Every tear, every prayer, every moment of growth is being woven into a tapestry of glory.

The Pearl in the Oyster

Nature provides us with a beautiful illustration of this principle. An oyster is a soft, sensitive creature protected by a hard shell. Sometimes a grain of sand or a parasite gets inside that shell, causing irritation and pain. The oyster cannot reach in and remove the irritant. It has no hands to push the problem away.

So what does it do? The oyster secretes a substance that coats the irritant. Over days, weeks, and months, that coating builds up layer by layer. Eventually, that grain of sand—that source of pain—is transformed into one of the most valuable and beautiful jewels in existence: a pearl.

The pain that couldn't be removed produced something precious.

This is how God works in our lives. Sometimes he allows difficulties we cannot immediately escape. We pray for relief, for the problem to be removed, but instead God uses that very difficulty to produce something greater in us. Our character is shaped. Our faith deepens. Our compassion expands. Our dependence on him grows.

God doesn't waste our pain. He doesn't waste our tears or our trials. He's always producing something of value, even when we can't see it yet.

The Danger of Losing Perspective

In recent times, we've seen a troubling increase in people choosing to end their lives, unable to see past their present pain. The enemy whispers lies: "You're not valuable. You're not beautiful. This will never get better. There's no reason to keep going."

These are deceptions designed to steal, kill, and destroy. The truth is radically different: you have immense value, a future filled with hope, and reasons to keep pushing forward. The chapter you're in right now—no matter how dark—is not the end of your story.

Drawing Power From Above

So where do we find the strength to keep going when life gets hard? We must learn to draw our power from heaven rather than from earthly circumstances. Like solar lights that draw energy from the sun and continue to shine even when darkness falls, we must stay connected to the Son of God, drawing strength from his presence.

Set your affections on things above, not on things below. When you're plugged into God's power, what the world takes away cannot steal your joy or your peace. You came into this world with nothing, and you'll leave with nothing—but what you gain in God can never be taken away.

A Reason to Give Thanks

Even in the midst of struggle, there's always a reason for gratitude. While you're crying over a cold, someone else is battling cancer. While you're complaining about your job, someone has been unemployed for months. While you're frustrated with your family, someone has no family at all.

This isn't to minimize your pain, but to provide perspective. A thinking person is a thankful person. When we count our blessings, we realize it could be worse—and that realization itself is a blessing.

The Promise of Glory

The ultimate truth that carries us through is this: there will be glory after this. The reward will outweigh the rejection. The healing will outweigh the hurt. The triumph will outweigh the trouble. What you're going through now cannot be compared to what's coming.

Your trials, tears, headaches, and pain will soon be over, and it will all be worth it. No pain, no gain. No trial, no triumph. God has to allow you to go through some things so he can get glory out of them—and so you can step into the fullness of who he created you to be.

So don't give up. Don't give in. Keep pushing. Keep trusting. Keep believing. Your trouble won't last always. Joy is coming. Victory is ahead. And when you look back on this season, you'll see how God was working all things together for your good.

The best is yet to come.