37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” 39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” 28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
8 We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. 9 Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. 10 He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, 11 as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.
What anyone else dares to boast about--I am speaking as a fool--I also dare to boast about. 22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they Abraham's descendants? So am I. 23 Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. 24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. 27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?
7 To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
3 The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the LORD tests the heart.
“Be not dismayed, but go to Him who is the God of all comfort, who comforteth all those that are bowed down, and He will give you a word which shall heal your wounds, and breathe peace into you spirit.” Charles H. Spurgeon
“My scars remind me that God is sufficient. And that physical perfection is not our goal. A life lived to God’s glory is infinitely more valuable. Scars represent more than I ever realized. They can be beautiful. The dictionary says “a scar is a mark left by a healed wound.” A healed wound... There is something captivating about people who were unafraid to be themselves: authentic, unmasked, and unashamed of the wounds that shaped them. Their vulnerability is magnetic. Because all scars have a story.” Vaneetha Rendall Risner
“Throughout the history of Christianity formalism has always been a deadly obstacle to the progress of both churches and individuals, leading the twentieth-century American preacher Vance Havner to say, ‘Many a Christian, many a church, has everything in the showcase and nothing on the shelves.’” John Blanchard
“Jesus doesn’t need us to be His militants in a broken world — as much as He invites all of us who’ve been mangled by this broken world to simply point to our Mender. Since we only have relationship with Him through His scars, we are as relatable as our scars — which lets others touch their scars to His — and be healed by His wounds.” Ann Voskamp
“The ocean will hold a boat or a battleship, and God’s grace will stand any weight you put on it.” Vance Havner
“Scars are the price which every believer pays for his loyalty to Christ.” William Hendriksen
“The cross, intersection of His love and my need, beam that supports the whole of a real life. The cross, the tree on which God hung Grace, the Light of the world, the only Star that shattered all my dark. I’m bent and cracked before a cross a few weeks before Christmas. And if there is no cross in my Christmas, then my Christmas has lost Christ, and what is the manger if it not for the Messiah, the one who saves us with the scars? This Babe who lays in a wooden manger, who came to lie on a wooden Cross, He is healing all wounds...” Ann Voskamp
“If my wounds draw me to the Healer, how great are my wounds!” BHY
“Are you fighting with the adversary today? Are Satan, the world, and the flesh, all against you? Be not discouraged nor dismayed. Fight on! For God Himself is with you; Jehovah Nissi is your banner, and Jehovah Rophi is the healer of your wounds. Fear not, you shall overcome, for who can defeat Omnipotence? Fight on, ‘looking unto Jesus;’ and though long and stern be the conflict, sweet will be the victory, and glorious the promised reward.” Charles H. Spurgeon