Triumphant Suffering

Sylvia’s mother suffered a stroke. Over the next several weeks, Sylvia moved her mom from the hospital to a rehabilitation center and then to a retirement center.

Sylvia sold her mother’s condominium, completely setting up a new apartment at the retirement home. She spent hours cleaning, boxing, and moving her mother’s things from the condo, while simultaneously preparing a second household. She was exhausted, but every one of her actions was an expression of
love for her mom.

Shortly after the move, Sylvia’s mother began finding fault with her daughter. Every decision, every sacrifice, came up short in the older woman’s eyes. Sylvia began to break down. God spoke to Sylvia, though, urging her not to be bitter. The unfair criticism of her mother propelled Sylvia to a deeper walk with the Lord, what author Gigi Graham Tchividjian calls “triumphant suffering.”

Sylvia continued to love and serve her mother until the older woman’s last day on earth. Even though the circumstances were trying, Sylvia remembered that her Savior, out of love, had also suffered for her. That sacrifice inspired Sylvia to persist in her own triumphant suffering.