I remember, when I was a young Army chaplain, listening to the Commandant of the Recruit Training Battalion giving the opening address to dozens of young men who were about to participate in a character guidance course, which I was to lead. He said: ‘Five weeks ago you arrived here as slovenly, ill-disciplined civilians, whose mothers did everything for you to make your lives more comfortable. But you quickly found out that the Army is not like your mother. It’s not primarily interested in your comfort; but it is interested in is your character; and when it comes to character, there is no gain without pain.’
I remember thinking they were inspired words because that’s how it is with us and God. We often think that God should be there to soothe our every pain, and we forget that God’s primary concern for us is the strength of character which only grows because of it.