Walking with God through Pain!

One word can connect everyone in a room. The word…..pain! Everyone has experienced pain in some form or another. From a splinter of wood to a scrapped knee or a broken bone, everyone it seems, can identify with pain.

Pain is a part of life. Physical, emotional, intellectual, even spiritual.

Physical pain is common to so many people because there are so many ailments that cause people pain. When the sun breaks on a new day, I can guarantee you that that light shines on people in physical pain. Some from many years of self-inflicted abuse from work, sports or just routine...but the pain doesn’t go away with a good nights sleep. Pain killers to some people are their best friend. They bring relief if only temporary from the nagging pain and discomfort of the limitations of our physical bodies.

Emotional pain is slightly more difficult to get a grasp on and discover solutions or resolve to the pain caused by emotions running out of control. Many people each day are locked in a battle of emotion. Each day it is anybody’s guess whether there will be victory or another day of emotional turmoil.

Intellectual pain is something that is less common. Like most pain, intellectual pain causes people to find solutions. Solutions make life an ever changing, many times improving, condition. To be gripped with a problem, whether it be scientific, societal or economic in nature to the point of pain, causes minds to become great, causes thinkers to become realists, causes solutions to rise for many of life's greatest challenges.

Spiritual pain. Now what does that look like? One perspective would be to take a look around in this world and see how spiritually stressed we are as people. There is no doubt that there is a spiritual side to our nature. Evidence points to an inbreed need to find significance and purpose and to be part of something much bigger than our human existence. So there seems to be a great search taking place over all the world...a search for spiritual peace and a place that could be classified as a soul sanctuary.
Another perspective would be demonstrated from those already convinced that there is a God and He is interested in our life and has chosen to reveal himself through nature, written books by directed authors, His son and Holy Spirit. These people experience a spiritual pain for they are part of a much larger picture than what meets the eye. The story that they are involved in has epic proportions. The battle between good and evil, the realization that souls each day are facing an eternity without hope and without God causes these faithful souls to experience spiritual pain.
Some see them as extremists, overly concerned about the spiritual side of life. The days when people are as passionate about others spiritual condition to the point of spiritual pain seems to have almost vanished...or has it.

I see a new generation of people in our world that are going back to the teachings of Jesus and realizing that he was passionate about a world of people caught in pain. Pain of all kinds. I see people who are committed disciples of Jesus who are involved in telling others that there is One who knows our pain. He understands our pain. He came to deliver us from that pain.

This Friday, all over the world, people with pause from the routine of daily existence to consider a man who experienced unbelievable pain. Physical, emotional, intellectual, and even spiritual. This man….Jesus. The scene that we will stop to consider this Friday is a scene that is saturated with pain. Consider for a minute these scenes:
· A teacher and Master who after asking his disciples to pray, finds them sleeping at one of the most crucial times of his life.
· A leader of a few close disciples completely deserted in a time of conflict
· A spiritual deliverer rejected by his own people
· A gentle and compassion man laid out before strong, angry soldiers to experience a beating few would survive
· A perfect person, one who had never sinned, having the sins of the entire world placed on his soul
· A son, hanging on a cross, representing everything that the father hates, having his father turn his eyes away from him, and forsakes him

I’d say that this man knew pain. I’d say that this man understood pain. I’d say that one of the reasons Jesus went to the cross and endured so much pain was so that you and I could experience healing and peace.
“He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.” Isaiah 53:5 New International Version of the Bible.
Whatever pain you are experiencing right now in your life...Jesus can identify. He knows. He understands. He cares.

This good Friday as you visit a corporate worship setting, take your pain with you. Broken relationships, broken hearts, broken dreams, crushed wishes, wounded bodies, tattered souls. Bring them all to Jesus and lay them down. He is there to walk with you through your pain. As you consider your pain and Jesus in the same thought, ask yourself, ‘what is it that this pain is designed to do in my life?’

I have found in my life there has been lots of pain. Many times self inflicted but times when others and an aging body bring pain to me without invitation. For all of those times I’ve found that pain strengthens my resolve. My resolve to trust in Jesus for the pains of life. To realize time after time, that when I am weak, he is strong. That when I cm completely dependent on Jesus as Lord and ruler of my life...those times...although seemingly very weak and vulnerable are times when I am the strongest spiritually. When I willingly allow self to die and Jesus to live in me.
For you pain today, I pray that my God would supply all your needs according to his riches in heaven.
For today, seek Him for peace and healing.
In His Grace,
Pastor Brian