God takes care of His children. Even the godless say so, "he will be looked after – we have His word for it." (Wis 2:20) So they treat the virtuous children of God cruelly just because they oppose their way of life. They even believe that God will do His part and rescue them. Do we believe this – that God will do His part and rescue us when we are persecuted?

Why are we not rescued by God in our troubles? St James says, "Why you don't have what you want is because you don't pray for it; when you do pray and don't get it, it is because you have not prayed properly, you have prayed for something to indulge your own desires." (Jam 4:2-3) Is to pray to be rescued by God to indulge our own desires? Possibly, if we are afraid to suffer for God's sake.

Jesus predicts His suffering and death to His disciples, but they do not understand what He is saying. Sometimes we also do not understand why we have to go through so much suffering. But Jesus is telling His disciples then, and us now, that we have to be last and servant of all, meaning we learn to acknowledge there are situations in which we have no power to change things. However, trials, like a refining fire, make our lives authentic and stronger.