Blog Post #8: Suffering
A Written Response By Lily Jeffs
1. In what ways did the people you learned about during this unit suffer? What was their reaction to their suffering?
There were many apostles within this unit that suffered horribly after trying to spread Christianity among others. Specifically, in Acts 5:12 - 41, Peter and John suffered when they were arrested twice for preaching God's word and had to be locked up in jail for many days before being rescued by an angel sent from God. In Acts 14:8 - 20, before Paul came to the town of Lystra to bring in more people to follow God, a man named Barnabas who lived here was unable to walk and had to go through the pain of not being able to live a normal life until he was later healed by Paul. In Acts 18:1 - 17, Paul had to suffer when he was attacked by the Jews and the Governor of Corinth whilst preaching that Jesus was the Messiah before Gallio later stood up for him and stopped the attack. In Acts 27:13 - 26, before Paul and his men were supported by God whilst sailing at sea, they had to endure the possibility of losing their lives when their ship began falling apart in a powerful storm. Lastly, in Acts 28:17 - 31, Paul had to suffer when he was arrested in Jerusalem because of promoting his religious beliefs to others before they began to believe him. When reflecting on these instances where Peter, John, Paul, and Barnabus had to suffer, although they were constantly being put down at first, they weren't upset and didn't give up, but instead continued to live up to God's word by inspiring themselves and others. Rather than feeling degraded by the people that arrested/beat them after not believing in their preachings, these apostles instead used the faith and strength they had gained from God to continue spreading his word and later bringing in thousands of followers. After learning about these different experiences where apostles had to suffer after standing up for something they strongly believe in, this has motivated me and has taught me to never give up on something I am passionate about, because nothing is impossible. To illustrate the ways in which these apostles suffered and how this had affected them as well as myself as a learner, an image is shown below in which Peter and John are being persecuted in court for upsetting the high priest after preaching about Jesus.
("The Apostles Persecuted")
2. Which story from the Acts of the Apostles did you find most inspiring and why?
When reflecting on the Acts of the Apostles, the story about Paul preaching at Rome under guard in Acts 28:17 - 31 was the most inspiring to me as a reader. In this story, Paul was arrested in Jerusalem for preaching about God but later released until people began protesting against him again. With saying this, Paul ignored the hate he had gained from others living here during this time, and instead continued preaching for the people that believed in him that consequently allowed God to gain so many followers later on as a result of his work. This story taught me that although there may be people who can put me down at times and can be in the way of a dream that I want to accomplish, I need to ignore them and instead use this as motivation to do even better. I found this story inspiring because Paul was a perfect example of how difficult it can be sometimes when we have to stand up for something we are passionate about or want to accomplish something but are too afraid to do so. As shown by his work, if I am ever doubting myself at first, I need to stop and instead focus on why I want to get past what ever I am afraid of rather than stepping back and believe in myself. I have ultimately found this story from the Act of the Apostles about Paul very helpful, and I will think of this the next time I am having trouble accomplishing one of my goals. To illustrate this story and the impact it has had on myself, an image of a shining star is shown below that symbolizes both the Star of Bethlehem that inspired the wise men to travel and meet Jesus that allowed him to become noticed by others as well as the motivation I have gained after reading this story that I will start using in my life as a whole with the support from Jesus and God.
("Shining Star Coloring Page | Free Printable Coloring Pages")
3. How have you experienced challenges in your own life and how have you dealt with them?
I have experienced many different challenges within my own life that I have had to later overcome. Specifically in school, there has been an occasion where I haven't performed as well as I would have hoped to on a test that I studied a lot for. Although I was very upset with myself at first, using the support from my parents, I didn't use the time after being given my poor result to grieve, but I was instead able to learn from the mistakes I made and later do well on the next test I had. Another experience that was very challenging was when I was trying out for a competitive club soccer team. I was very nervous and I knew that I had to make the team to play at a better level, but a few days after tryouts when I was told that I didn't make it and was instead a practice player (I could only attend the practices and wasn't on the full game roster), I was extremely upset. With saying this, after crying a lot, I was able to become a much better player once I began practicing with them. It was shown that my hard work and perseverance had payed off, because the next season, I was offered a spot on the team and have currently won many different tournaments and league titles so far. After reflecting on how I was able to deal with the challenges relating to school and sports, this has taught me that everything will work out in the end, and it is just up to how hard I work that will truly determine how successful I am later on. To illustrate these experiences, an image of a trophy is shown below that symbolizes the success I have had after overcoming different challenges within my life that I will use to guide me when I have to endure similar experiences later on.
("Trivia Champion Crowned")
4. Who are people that you can turn to in times of need and why?
When I am in need of help, there are many different people that I can turn to that will support me. One group of people that I go to first are my family. Because they have known me my entire life, I know that they will help me and guide me to what is best for my life as a whole. My family are also very understanding, welcoming, and listen to what my heart is saying whenever I am having trouble in life that allows me to feel very connected with them. In certain situations, if I don't feel that it is right to speak with my parents, I enjoy going to my close friends for support. Our similarities in age and experiences in school and sports allow us to fully understand and relate to each other. My friends are also very trustworthy and accepting and always give advise no matter how difficult the situation is. When I need to speak with others in times of need, my family and my best friends are ultimately who I go to because of how loving they are. To illustrate this, an image of two people holding hands is shown below that symbolizes the trust I have with my family and friends that helps me get through difficult times in my life.
("Holding Hands Clipart Couple Holding Hands Drawing Clip Art Library Print Coloring
Pages")
Pages")
Works Cited
“Holding Hands Clipart Couple Holding Hands Drawing Clip Art Library Print Coloring
Pages.” Sportekevents.com, www.sportekevents.com/2017/08/holding-hands-
clipart/holding-hands-clipart-couple-holding-hands-drawing-clip-art-library-print-coloring- pages/.
“Shining Star Coloring Page | Free Printable Coloring Pages.” Super Coloring, 14 Nov. 2017,
www.supercoloring.com/coloring-pages/shining-star.
“The Apostles Persecuted.” Faith vs. Sight, 12 May 2015, faithvssight.com/2015/05/12/the-apostles-
persecuted/.
“Trivia Champion Crowned.” Minimo, www.gregorydavisdds.com/blog/2015/09/30/2015-trivia-
champion-crowned-163237.
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