Understanding Suffering

"We need to make the call even more clear. Peter says, 'Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same thought' (1 Peter 4:1). The suffering of Christ is a call for a certain mindset towards suffering. Namely, that it is normal and that the path of love will often require it. Thus Peter says, 'Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal which comes upon you to prove you, as though something strange were happening to you' (1 Peter 4:12). Suffering with Christ is not strange. It is your calling, your vocation. It is the 'same experience of suffering required of your brotherhood throughout the world' (1 Peter 5:9). This is the 'thought' that we need to put on like armor, lest we be vulnerable to suffering as something strange."