Pain is part of life. There is no way around it. I was talking with someone today and I said, “Tough times are coming.” Not “if’ but “when”….because that is the reality we live with. Sometimes, it seems harder to hold onto God during those painful times. I think how I choose to look at it…what perspective I bring, can either help me or hurt me when I face difficulties. The following quote brings me a beautiful glimpse of God’s love for me in the center of my pain:In all those dark moments, O God, grant that I may understand that it is you who are painfully parting the fibers of my being in order to be able to penetrate to the very marrow of my being.
Teilhard de Chardin
This prayer rose in my heart as I reflected on this quote.
Lord,
Help me to understand that in the midst of my pain, you are so present. Help me to grasp that my pain is not wasted…that it will be used by You to mold my heart and my being to become more like You. Help me to be content in the midst of the pain and to look for You there. Please change my perspective. Allow me to embrace the place I find myself and may my response always reflect You.Thank you for Your love and care.
Love,
me
How do you look at pain in your life? Do you think you can look at it with this persepctive? It definitely isn't easy but being able to see Jesus, next to you, in a painful sitution can allow you to persevere and surrender to changes He wants to bring about in your life.
Peace,
Deb
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
pain
Posted by deb at 5:43 AM
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4 comments:
Deb,
During this past year as I have wrestled with God and pain in my own life, the only thing that has brought any comfort has been knowing that Jesus is right there, in the midst of the pain, in the midst of the struggle, in the midst of the suffering. Knowing that he is there, and that he feels my pain too, has freed me to release it to him.
Recently, thanks to a conversation with a dear friend :), I have begun to look at this perspective on pain (the one in your blog today)....and at the possibility that God is not only allowing it, but also orchestrating it. Now you might ask, how can a loving God do that? But as you have previously commented, he does it gently and tenderly.(not that it hurts any less).
I found this verse in Hosea speaking about God wooing us back to himself..."Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt. In that day declares the Lord, you will call me 'my husband'; you will no longer call me 'my master'.(Hosea 2:14-16)
I think is going to be my life verse for awhile. A quote from Dan Allender:"Why would God take his beloved to the desert to restore her? So that he can reveal to her the magnitude of his love." The "pain journey" is really a "love journey" if you are willing to look for Jesus. I know he wants to be on the journey with me and I know he wants to be 'my husband'. I know he wants to restore me and bring me to a place of rest. Thank you Jesus for your love.
And thanks, Deb for the blog.
Mary Kay,
What a beautiful passage from Hosea! That is the persepective I was talking about. I know from painful places in my past, once I emerged from them, I was amazed at seeing God's hand and also at how He used that pain to change me.
Thank you so much for sharing!
Peace,
Deb
I heard a song this morning with a lyric, "Live in me today. Let your spirit reign. And what is not like you, let it be removed..."
That is such a huge claim to pray to God! I was just recently sick with mono this past semester and am trying to see what God is doing amidst the weakness and pain that I still do feel. The word Refine comes to mind meaning "treat or prepare so as to put in a usable condition" and "make absolute, clear from blemishes."
Perhaps that as a part of God's desire being for us to be more like Him, he must chip away at our old selves, which can be painful.
I can see God's saving mercy in him allowing my physical and spiritual weakness from having mono - and I look forward to seeing more and more of his plan along this "love journey."
I know this is a reality...that it's not a matter of "if" it's "when". And there are moments when the thought of what that "if" might be can take my breath away and make my chest tight. I fear physical pain or dying from cancer because I've seen it destroy loved ones. I fear having to watch it again with my dearest ones. I fear needles and my dad is diabetic with 3 shots a day plus testing. Sometimes my brain will say, "which one will I get? What if it's one of my kids?" There are so many painful things that could happen (not just physically obviously)and it could be so easy to just freeze up from the fear.
Instead, I find myself seeking Him out for today and as each day progresses when I'm in the middle of those painful moments I am actually surprised at the strength he provides to make it through. Even more so, he gives me the encouragement through his word that I need...even if it's only to crawl that next step. Knowing that God is in control of the situation and that he loves me can make all the difference in the world. I think the verse that always pops into my head first when things seem too hard is Jeremiah 29:11. He does know the plans he has for me and they aren't to hurt me. They're to give me hope and a future.
This belief is 100 degrees from where I used to live life. I used to fear God's next painful strike in my life. I was afraid to even love others for fear it would hurt too much when I lost them. As I've aged and had children...I know that not to love with my whole heart would have been the greater tragedy. God is not out to get us. Well, actually, he is...but not in the negative way =) He wants us running to him, not from him. He yearns to be the rock we can stand on when all else is crumbling away.
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