St. John of Avila: On the Honor Found in Suffering for Christ

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort, who comforteth us in all our tribulation; that we also may be able to comfort them who are in all distress, by the exhortation wherewith we also are exhorted by God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so also by Christ doth our comfort abound.”

These are the words of the apostle St. Paul. Thrice he was scourged with rods, five times with whips, and once he was stoned in such a way that he was left for dead. He was persecuted by men of all conditions, and exposed to all sorts of afflictions and trials, and this so often that he says in another part of his writings: “We who live are always delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake: that the life also of Jesus may be made manifest in our mortal flesh.”  …