Faith Through Hardship

Recently, I watched a movie called The Grey starred by Liam Neeson as John Ottway. It's a story about 7 oil workers surviving a plane crash in a snowy mountain, but surprise packages already await them. Fiery wolves are haunting and ready to finish them off, while the harsh weather doesn't seem to compromise either.

The omega wolf, the weakest in wolves' social structure

*spoiler alert* (I recommend the movie, just beware of the obscene language)

The fear overwhelms them after the death of the first person. A glimpse of hope is found when they are able to kill the omega wolf, which is considered only to be the lowest in a wolf pack. But the prospect is deemed bogus when one by one starts to fall down without any resistance. My main highlight is when everyone got killed but Ottway. He then shouts to the sky and asks God to try to prove himself by doing something to save his life. He even said that he would believe God for the rest of his life if something did happen. But nothing happens. And the movie ends with the wolves outflanking him while Ottway weaponizes himself by everything he has at that moment.

Though looking from Christian worldview, I'm not trying to say that this movie is bias towards nihilism. The Grey has, in my opinion, portrayed the real hardship that happens in life. Sometimes it can be very ruthless to a point where one thinks he/she would be better off dead than continue living. We may not know how it feels to be one of 500 millions where water / food barely exists for them to survive, so let's consider a more relevant situation. Maybe we didn't do a great job in the workplace, hated by the boss and colleagues, getting fired too often, hopping in and out different companies just to be able to fund our daily living cost. Maybe we live in the world where we have no friends or buddies that we can rely on, no parents or teachers that we can ask advice to; we feel that there's no one that actually cares about us. Just like Ottway when he got surrounded by the wolves, all by himself. 

Faith, can be obtained or strengthened with the aid of miracles. As if I try to imagine where suddenly some helicopters appear above him while SEAL soldiers constantly fire off the machine gun towards the wolves besieging Ottway. Miracles do happen and some people do believe afterwards. The sad truth is that it REALLY doesn't always happen to everyone, no exception for the believers. 

So now what awaits those who are suffering but still don't find a way out ? There's a good news for you. Christians believe that the real war has been won when Christ sacrificed His life in place of us, and rose from the death to confirm the victory against evil and provide salvation for those who believes. Christians also believe that everything that happens in this world is beyond His control and lies within His sovereign will. Looking from this point of view, means that our current life's situation, no matter how bad, is irrelevant towards the 'salvation project' and the final outcome for the believers.This is exactly what Jesus expressed as in John 16:33

"In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world."

What Jesus would probably say in the midst of our suffering nowadays

Note that Jesus didn't promise that we will live happily in this world (oh yes, some people advertise Christianity with happiness/money/stuff in life they can obtain, but it really doesn't promise so), but instead he promised that we will definitely have problems in life. He knows this fact too much and how weak is human's heart that he reminded us that the set of all problems, and more, the world itself, has been under his control and that you don't need to worry no more.

His disciple, Peter ascertained the fact that suffering is a norm for Christian, as in 1 Peter 4:12,

"Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you."

I didn't say that the sufferings are fake or just some illusions. It is as evident as you can ever feel if you're having a severe toothache. Extreme discomfort and pain. But sometimes, effort alone might not take us out of our hardship. And in some extreme situation, we can't always get out from the wolves alive (I mean literally), but we can choose to prepare something for the aftermath. That thing is called : FAITH.