God turns pain into purpose.
It is such a powerful statement.
And it is such a true statement.
But can I tell you, that at one time, this statement annoyed me.
Because I had experienced so much pain.
And because I was so tired of so much pain.
Like surely the summation of my life cannot be to experience so much pain, in order to have purpose on this earth. Surely not?!
Oh, the thoughts that one has when life feels so very hard, right?
When life is hard it is so easy to move inward.
It’s easy to narrow our focus.
It’s easy to only think of what we are experiencing and what we are going through.
But God does have a greater purpose. God has a greater plan.
I mean, let us just look at Jesus.
He was born to DIE.
Literally, His purpose was to come to earth to die for you and I.
It seems so wrong.
And it seems unfair even.
But where would we be or what hope would we have without the sacrifice that Christ made in dying on a cross for our sin?
As the saying goes, we would all be like a ship without a sail.
Lost and on our way to hell, a place that was not created for us, with no way of redemption.
So, are you in a hard place?
Have you experienced some pain in your life?
Are you wondering if God can turn your pain into purpose?
Are you wondering if those words are really true?
I am here to tell you that they are.
Because I have experienced this in my own life.
How, bit by bit, God was working.
And little by little, God was transforming.
Step by step, God was absolutely turning pain into purpose.
He does this through our testimonies.
Revelation 12:11 NKJV says “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.”
God turns pain into purpose through the stories that we could tell.
And the stories that will be told.
The stories that are helping others.
And the stories that will one day help others.
For the saving of many souls.
Pain into purpose.
I can finally say that I get it.
And I can finally say that I understand it “better” not fully.
That, God turns pain into purpose.
It’s not cliché, because the truth is, nothing really is ever wasted in Him.
I would go to the deeps a hundred times to cheer a downcast spirit. It is good for me to have been afflicted, that I might know how to speak a word in season to one that is weary. -Charles Spurgeon.
For hope navigating the pain of loss and grief, pre-order my book Can You Just Sit with Me here!
