Pain can sometimes lead us away from Hope as we battle with experiences such as heart break, physical and mental ailments, rejection and other painful encounters that life showers upon us. It can be very hard to keep up appearances as we stumble through life and its challenges. How often have you responded "I'm okay" when asked how we are, even though our hearts are breaking, or our bodies are in pain. Sometimes we don't feel able to answer the question with a truthful response.
Maybe we feel our pain is too much for others to hear. Or perhaps we feel we ought to put on a brave face to save the other person from hearing about our woes once again.
In fact pain can actually distance us from our family and best friends when we wear a mask.
Trying to cope with our pain on our own is exhausting. That is why Jesus brought together a band of men and women to support one another in their ministry. He knew that they would need close friends who they could be themselves with. Whom they could share their victories and difficulties with.
Pain is a tool by which the seeds of doubt are sown.
Why does God allow me to suffer this pain?
When will God take away this pain?
What have I done to deserve this treatment, it has broken my heart? Why would God allow it?
I have been good all my life, followed all the rules, given to the poor, regularly gone to church and I am rewarded with this, unemployment, debt and my house being repossessed. This is just too much. What is God doing?
If we continue to walk this path of painful thinking it will lead downwards. If we walk away from those people who will support and help us because life is too painful to share, we will further sink into hopelessness.
Pain is a means to connect with Jesus rather than disconnect with Him.
Romans 5:3-5
Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
Hope does not disappoint us. Jesus is our greatest Hope and He will not desert nor disappoint us. He will bring us through our pain so that we can help others with theirs.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.
So when we say "Oh I am okay" when we are not, we are not allowing the Holy Spirit to lead us in our recovery. If we deny our pain we deny the healing of Hope to enter into our hearts. Those seeds of hopeless will not be watered with words of Truth that others can share with us when we most need them.
It is important to combat those Why's, When's and What's that we ask. Why did God... Why has He allowed... When will this end... What have I done...
With the truth that is stated in:
2 Corinthians 4:17
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.
And the knowledge that God has everything covered with His Hope and Grace.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
If you are in pain now, embed it in the Heart of God. Allow His Hope and Healing to cover and embrace you. Let Him have your tears of pain.
You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?
God is and always will be our Hope.
God bless
Margaret x
(Margaret Kazmierczak - author of 'How to make Victoria Sponge - a journey of faith' available on amazon in paperback and kindle)
Labels: 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, 2 Corinthians 4:17, battle, challenges, church, experiences, God, heart breaking, hope, life, mask, mental ailments, pain, rejection, Romans 5:3-5
