Don't Waste Your Pain

John Ortberg writes in his book, The Life You've Always Wanted,"...the thing that keeps me from experiencing joy is my preoccupation with self. The very selfishness that keeps me from pouring myself out for the joy of others also keeps me from noticing and delighting in the myriad small gifts God offers each day."

Do you experience joy in your day-no matter what the day holds for you? Are you choosing joy, as Paul speaks of in the New Testament? If you are not, you are missing out on so much! God uses our pain and suffering for so many reasons. One being to make our joy complete. It is hard to understand this if you have not suffered from chronic pain, but if you have had ongoing pain you know what it is like to have days where there doesn't seem to be anything to do except think upon the pain you feel. We become preoccupied with our self, and not in a way that is beneficial to ourselves or others. When we are preoccupied with our pain and suffering, we begin the downward spiral that is all too familiar in suffering. It goes something like this: I'm tired of being in pain-I can't do anything about it-why is this happening-what good is my life-I'm tired of dealing with pain...etc. In this time Satan uses our weakness against us as he always tries to do! "Joy, where are you?" I shout as if it will, just show up on its own and produce a peace I have never had. But you see, joy is something we experience when we get our mind off of ourselves in our pain. Pouring ourselves out to others opens our heart for joy, joy to serve God and love others. God offers small gifts to us each day. Are you looking for a way to be joyful today?

How are you feeling today? Are you fearful concerning your pain? The future? Do you let your fear concerning your pain rule your life? Let's look at God's Word for direction...

Isaiah says, "Do not be afraid, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my victorious right hand." (chapter 41:10)

In this life we are told we will have trouble, sickness, disease, but we have a great physician that not only is with us daily, hourly, minute by minute but He is also strengthening us. He is victorious! So friend, don't be afraid. He is there. Do not fear. Keep your joy in the midst of your pain. Remember that is the one thing Satan will try to get from you. Never let Him. Keep focused on the Lord and stay in His Word. Memorize Isaiah 41:10 and then live out your joy in the Lord!!!

Dear friends,
Today seems like any other day. Yes pain is there, yes people around me seem to be living such easy lives, yes I have my ups and downs emotionally, but today is quite different as well. I have been reading The Holiness of God by RC Sproul for awhile now and I have been learning so much about who God is. It hit me today that in Genesis 2:17 God says to Adam and Eve that they will surely die if they eat of the forbidden fruit. They did, but they did not immediately die. Do you ever wonder why? The Bible says God is slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.

It doesn't seem fair that we are in pain daily, but compared to the fact that if God gave us complete justice for our sins we would die immediately when we sin, we have been given mercy. Yes, God showed mercy on us by letting us live another day even in our pain. It has been granted for us to suffer. Suffering can come in many forms. Physical suffering is just one way that God bestows mercy on us. This is something people who don't suffer with chronic pain will probably never understand, but in our pain we draw closer to the creator of the universe. God is so holy we can't be in his presence, yet He chose to draw us to Himself through the blood of Jesus-How amazing! In our pain we struggle each day to find meaning and purpose and in those times we can draw close to God, allowing Him to minister to our hearts. Let Him today...He is so good.

Today I found out my friend, Wendy, just lost her 12 year old son Brendan to a brain tumor. He had only been diagnosed a month ago. He had his whole life before him. Don't we all think that. We want to all believe this life is going to be long and one day we will retire and enjoy our last decades sipping lemonades under a large oak tree on our veranda  with the love of our life sitting next to us. But is this reality? No. At least not for most of us. You see, we are not in control of when we come into this world, how much pain we will have in this world, or when we shall leave this world. But as Christians, one thing we can be sure of is this: this world is the worst it will ever get for us.

Those of you struggling through pain right now I really want you to hear me. God one day will call us home as He did Brendan today and on that day He will wipe every tear from our eye and there will never again be pain and suffering. We will get to enjoy our Savior forever. If that day is tomorrow or 60 years from now what matters most is this: are we glorifying God with our lives? Are we sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with those we love? It could be their last hour or yours.

To the non-christian I ask this: Do you know where you are going when you die? Are you sure? God's words tells us there is a very real Heaven and also a hell. We all sin every day and because God is holy, holy, holy He can not be in the presence of sin. Hell is the place we all deserve to go...But God, in His great mercy and grace provided One way to Heaven and that is through Jesus Christ. He is THE way, THE Truth, and THE life. No one comes unto the Father except through Jesus-who bore our sins on the cross and rose three days later , defeating death. Repent now and put your trust in Him. You never know how much longer you have.

Deuteronomy 31:8
The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.

Psalm 46 says, "Be still and know that I am God."

It is hard to be still and know He is in control and rest in that. It is so hard to wait. I hate to wait, yet in the waiting I draw near to my Lord. I find that in the waiting I realize how much of my life is not in my control. God shows me during this time I need rest for my soul. Psalm 27 also tells us about waiting, "Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage. Yes wait for the Lord." It takes courage to wait when we just want our pain to be over and get back to our old life. Find your strength in Jesus. He will renew your strength today! Are you waiting on the Lord?

Most of us know the parable of the Sower from Luke 8:5-15. These verses are some of the most poignant words of Christ. They describe every person in this world.

1. the first type of person rejects the Gospel. The seed (the Word of God) is thrown on a rocky path and Satan comes and takes away the word from their hearts so they may not believe and be saved.
2. the second type of person receive the Word with joy at first, but when pain and suffering come to test them they cannot endure. It is so difficult when pain comes into our lives. We may have started out with joy and thankfulness to God but as soon as our health, marriage, children, things are taken from us we do not keep on rejoicing. Rather we might blame God and our joy now is nothing more than a distant memory. Friend, I hope your joy is not set in things on this earth where "moth and rust destroy"  (Matt 6:19) rather on things in Heaven!
3. the third type of person is choked by pleasures and prosperity (almost the antithesis of #2) and these people can not mature into true faith in Christ because their mind is so consumed with this world.
4. The fourth type of person hears the Word and retains it. I pray this is where you are and hopefully your pain in not a stumbling block for you but a testimony to God's goodness. God tests us and refines as as gold (Job 23:10).      

                                      

I just don't understand why there has to be so much suffering!? Have you, yourself said this before, crying out to God for understanding? I have too. We can understand a bit of this mystery when we read the account of Lazarus in the Bible. In John 11 we learn that a very good friend of Jesus is dying. His sisters, Mary and Martha, tell Jesus about his sickness. But listen to Jesus' response. "This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God's glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it." WoW Lazarus was sick for this reason alone...so that God may receive glory! You would think Jesus would come to his rescue and save him from the sickness but Jesus does something no one saw coming. He stayed far away from Lazarus! How bizarre...Do you ever feel far from the Lord when you are suffering as if He has left you to fend for yourself? I'm sure Mary and Martha felt the same way. How could their close friend Jesus leave them right when they needed Him most? But Jesus had a very good reason and He has a very good reason for your trial or suffering! Four days after Lazarus died Jesus came. What? Why Jesus? You could have saved him. I know you loved him so why? Martha responds by saying, "Lord if you had been here my brother would not have died." I have felt that before...Lord if you would only answer my prayer so my suffering will go away. I know that you love me, so why? Jesus waited so His glory would be seen! He raised Lazarus from the dead! Sure His glory would be seen if He cured him of his disease while he was living, but wow, when He said, "Lazarus, come out!" everything changed! God received glory! Do you know that in your suffering God is with you. He will never leave you or forsake you. He might rescue you from the flames of pain, He may walk with you through the flames of pain or He may take you home from the flames of pain. Any which way it happens, He is there with you! So take heart friend! He has you where He wants you.