Sometimes our faith requires us to dig into the muck and deal with some fairly nasty parts of life. God does not promise that our lives will be easy, but rather that the work will be worth it in the end. That is the true measure of our faith. I ponder this at times when I feel that I am nearing the end of my endurance or patience. Sometimes I am even distrustful when things seem to come too easily.
Noah was rewarded with the vision of a rainbow, a promise that none of his descendants would ever have to go through what he went through. God makes us a similar promise: that the troubled times in our lives lead to something better, that the world will become a better place. However, it will take work to get it there.