iBelieve that pain should be respected.
Often times in our lives we try our best to eliminate pain. Whether it be physical or emotional pain, we do all we can to alleviate ourselves. We do not enjoy pain; of course, we aren't meant to enjoy pain. I believe that seasons of pain produce beauty.
Think of winter. It's harsh, cold, and bitter. We sometimes catch a glimpse of beauty in snow covered hills, but for the most part it's barren & dead. What we don't see under the surface is life preparing for full bloom come Spring. Without winter, there would be no Spring. There would be no refreshing beauty of growth &; bloom.
Of course, I think of childbirth. It's painful. It's designed to be that way. With out that labor, though, life could not exist. New growth would not be possible without this pain.
Sometimes in life we go through seasons of pain. We have a loved one die, we experience sickness, financial turmoil, the list goes on and on. The beauty here is the growth and new life that lies on the other side.
My preacher said yesterday "Don't waste the pain." So simple, yet so deep. If the Lord has brought us to this season of pain & mourning, let's not waste it. Let's learn something and grow. Allow the Lord to work in you so that your pain is for growth and perseverance.
Don't waste the pain.
If you are experiencing a season of pain, ask the Lord what He is trying to teach you. Where are you supposed to grow as a result of this cirucumstance? Remember that our Lord is much bigger than any situation He has brought you to. He will bring you through it.
We know that the Lord does not work in ways that we understand. Sometimes in order to recieve the greatest blessing, we must endure a hard time. So... picture this.... The Lord has the most beautiful gift to give us, yet on our journey towards it, we gripe and complain the whole time. The whole time God is sitting back telling us to trust Him, that this is good! Almost like giving your spouse a beautiful gift, yet they refuse to see it's beauty.
As we go through seasons of pain, let us rejoice!
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James 1:2-3
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
Psalm 18:2
The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
2 Corinthians 7:9-10
As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us. For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.
Job 1:21
And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.”
1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it
Hebrews 2:18
For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
Romans 8:1
I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.
1st Peter 4:12-13
Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when His glory is revealed.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Have you ever experienced pain that resulted in pure beauty?
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2 comments:
Beautifully written Megan! Let's read this right before we go into labor ;)
Shortly after you wrote this, I was reading the last chapter of "Kisses from Katie" by Katie Davis (www.amazima.org). She is a 23 year old who gave up everything to follow God and move to Uganda. God has used her to start so many great things there. Her story is inspiring. Anyway...in the last chapter, she talks about the pain and sorrow of serving in a country with so much poverty, sickness, etc. Then, she says that as Christ Followers we are meant to be acquainted with sorrow. "We must know sorrow to be able to fully appreciate joy." She tells how at the end of every painful, hard, and dark situation, there is something beautiful. Then, she says after she realized this she wants to go back to those hard places again and again and again. I thought that was so inspiring and wanted to share because it fit perfectly with this topic.
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