Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
One of the most perplexing questions that people ask is
why is there pain in the world? And why does
a good God allow pain? You know, it's not a
new question. Thousands of years ago, Solomon asked this question
in the Book of Ecclesiastes in the Old Testament. In Ecclesiastes,
Chapter two, verses twenty two and twenty three, he says this,
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so what do people get for all their hard work
and their struggles here on earth? Their entire life is
filled with pain, and their work is unbearable, and even
at night their minds don't rest. It all seems so pointless. Now,
many scientific studies have documented that human beings are able
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to handle enormous amounts of pain if if if we
know there's a good purpose for that pain. You see,
it's worthless pain, it's arbitrary pain. It's pain that feels pointless,
pain without any purpose. That's the kind of pain that
is so unbearable and so intolerable. When you see a
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purpose behind pain, you can handle enormous amounts of it.
For instance, many of you women have given birth to
a child. Giving birth is painful, but women bear that
pain for a great purpose. They bring forth life. Pain
with a purpose is manageable. Pain without a purpose is unmanageable.
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No matter what kind of pain you're going through right now,
or no matter what kind of pain you're going to
go through in the future. It may be physical pain,
it may be emotional pain, it may be spiritual pain.
It may be financial or relational or mental mental pain.
You will be far better prepared to handle pain. You'll
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be far better prepared to cope with it if you
focus on the potential benefits and the possible purposes of
that pain. I know somebody saying, well, okay, where do
I get the courage and truth to focus on when
I'm in deep pain? Well, the answer is the Bible.
The Bible, the Book of God's Holy Word, is where
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you focus to get the purposes and the potentials and
the promises of God. They're all in the Bible to
help you handle the pain that's in life. Romans eight
twenty eight says this, we know that in all things
God works for the good of those who love Him,
who have been called according to His purpose. Now look
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at that verse for just a minute. We know that
in all things God works for the good. It doesn't
say all things are good. Obviously, there's a lot of
bad things in the world, and so not everything that
happens in your life is good, And you shouldn't even
act like everything that happens in your life is good.
There's a lot of bad things that happen to you
and other people because there is evil, there is sin
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in the world. But the Bible says, we know that
in all things God is working for the good of
those who love him. Now, this is not a promise
for everybody. It's only a promise for those who love Him,
who've been called according to his purpose. But if you
love God and if you're trying to live according to
his purpose, the Bible says God is working in all things,
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even the bad things, the evil things, the terrible things,
the sinful things, the painful things of life. God says I,
and I'm working even in all those things for your good.
What is this verse teaching us. It's telling us that
pain can be managed by purpose and on purpose, and
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for a purpose. Everybody has problems, but some people profit
from them and some don't. They don't know how to
learn from their losses. Everybody has losses, and some people
learn from them and others don't. Believers who grow are
those who learn how to harvest their hurts. They learn
learn from their losses to profit from problems. They learn
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how to improve from their injuries, how to advance from
their adversity, how to gain from their pain. This is
what God wants to do in pain, using the pain
in your life. God doesn't have to create pain. There's
plenty of pain already in the world, but God wants
to use it for good. And this is why the
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question Paul asked in Galatians chapter three is so important.
In Galatians chapter three, verse four, Paul says this to
the people there in the church in Galatia. He says,
have you gone through all of this for nothing? Is
it all really for nothing? In other words, have you
wasted the pain in your life? That's a question that
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I have to ask myself. It's a question you have
to ask yourself and say, well, is it too late
to change?
Speaker 2 (04:51):
No, it is not.
Speaker 1 (04:52):
It's not too late to change your mind. It's not
too late to start benefiting from the pain. Let's look
at five ways to use your pain for good in
your life, whether it's physical or emotional, or relational, financial,
any kind of pain. God wants to use it five
different ways for good in your life. Now, let me
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give you a personal testimony, but I'm going to share
with you today. I know this works from personal experience
as I'm sharing this message right now. This is the
sixth anniversary of when our youngest son died, and that
day was the worst day of our family's life. And
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yet we are moving forward, and we're moving forward in
hope because of what we know from God's word, like
the verse I just read, and because of how we've
used that pain for good and for God in our
lives and in the lives of others. So what I'm
sharing with you is from personal experience. Five ways God
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wants to use your pain for good. Number one, use
pain to draw closer to God and trust him more.
Use the pain in your life to draw closer to
God and trust him more. You know, when anything painful happens,
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you've got a choice. You can either run to God
or you can run from God. And now the second
way never made any sense for me. If you're running
away from God, what are you running to? Who could
help you more in your pain than God? Why not
run to God? But some people, when they're in pain
they run to God. And some people, when they're in pain,
they actually run from God, they run away from Him.
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You know, I'll have to tell you, since Matthew died,
I've spent more time personally alone with God than all
of my previous life combined.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
Why.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
Pain has a way of drawing you close to God. Now,
how do you do that? How do you draw closer
to God when you're in pain? Well, the first thing
you do is you just tell Him exactly how you feel.
If you want to argue with God, argue with God. God,
I don't like this, God, I'm mad, I'm upset. That's
a prayer. It's called the prayer of lament. You need
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to learn how to worship God in all the phases
of grief. You know, our family did what Paul did
in tewod Corinthians chapter one, in verses eight to ten,
he says this. He talks about a time he was
so depressed.
Speaker 2 (07:26):
He says, we were.
Speaker 1 (07:27):
Crushed and overwhelmed, and we saw how powerless we were
to help ourselves. Ever felt like that, Paul says, but
that was good. What do you mean, crushed, overwhelmed, powerless?
He says, that was good? For then we put everything
into the hands of God, who alone could save us,
and he did help us. One of the first things
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our family did after Matthew took his life is we
actually went away on a retreat together as a family,
and we did a surrender to God retreat together where
were saying, God, We're going to put this all in
the hands, all of our brokenness, all of our pain,
all of our hurt, all of our sorrow. Can you
imagine that kind of sorrow? And as a family we
did a surrender to God retreat. Why because pain can
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draw you close to God if you'll let it. The
Bible says God is close to the broken hearted. God
is never closer to you than when you're in pain.
And many of you could say pain turned me to Christ.
That's why Paul later says in Second Corinthians, chapter seven,
verse ninety, says, I'm glad not because it hurts you.
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I'm glad not because it hurts you, but because the
pain turns you to God. And that's the first thing
you can do. Don't waste your pain, let it turn
you to God. Spend longer times with him, reading the Bible,
studying his word, being quiet, listening to God, being alone
with God. That's what pain can do. It can draw
you closer to God. That's called worship. Number two. The
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second way you can use pain for good is to
use pain to draw closer to others. Use pain to
draw closer to others. This is called fellowship. If you
allow it, and if you're honest about the things that
are causing you pain, pain will deepen and mature your
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love and your relationships and your sense of community and Poynanea,
it will build authentic relationships. You see, suffering sensitizes you
because it turns you away from being self centered to
all of a sudden, when you've gone through a major pain,
you're sensitized to it in others and you can see
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other people in pain, and all of a sudden, you
care more about other people in pain. You know, there's
a sad statistic that about a third of marriages end
up splitting up after the loss of a child because
we all all grieve differently and off and a husband
grieves one way and a wife greaves in another way,
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and it causes people to go further and further apart.
But Kay and I, when Matthew died, decided that we
were going to use the pain to actually grow closer
together rather than have it drive us apart. And one
of the things we did is we decided to not
try to talk each other out of our pain. But
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when Kay was going through a down moment, a wave
of grief, I would simply walk over to her and
put my arm around her, or just stand by her
and be quiet. I wouldn't say anything. There were no
words to say. It's just the ministry of presents. The
deeper the pain someone is going through, the fewer words
you use. Sometimes people are afraid to go over to
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a friend's house when they've lost love and.
Speaker 2 (10:50):
Say, I don't know what to say, don't.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
Say anything, just show up and shut up, just be there.
It's the ministry of presence. They don't need words, they
just need your presence. Like when the night Matthew died
and our small group came over and said, we're spending
the night at your house.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
We're not going to leave you here alone. We're gonna
be with you.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
And they didn't try to preach any sermons or give
us any words of wisdom. They were just there the
ministry of presents, and they slept on our couches and
you know, in our kitchen and everywhere. And I'll never
forget that. And now when Kay and I would go
through different waves of grief. I'm going through grief, she
would come over and just stand with me, or sometimes
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a pat on the back or grab my hand, the physical,
you know, touch without.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
Trying to explain something away or.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
Trying to talk somebody out of their pain. Instead of
trying to help somebody get out of their pain. Don't
try to cheer people up when they're in grief. Instead,
try to enter into their grief and feel it with him.
That's how you use pain to build fellowship. That's how
you use pain to build a relationship. That's how you
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use pain to get closer to someone, not trying to
talk them out of what they're feeling, but actually you
trying to feel it with them, sharing it with them.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
I will tell you.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
I asked, Kay, why do you think we're so much
closer together after you know, Matthew died.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
She said, because you've been so nice to me.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
But we intentionally worked at strengthening our relationship and we
gave each other grace. And what that means is we
didn't judge each other other's feelings. You see, we often
think our feelings are legitimate, but your feelings are illegitimate.
My fears are rational, your feelings, your fears are irrational.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
No.
Speaker 1 (12:40):
No, we gave each other grace, so you stop judging
each other's feelings and try to feel each other's feelings.
That's what you do in pain to grow it closer relations.
Chapter six, Verse two says this, by helping each other
with your troubles, you truly obey the law of Christ.
Speaker 2 (13:00):
What is the law Christ? Love your neighbor as yourself.
Speaker 1 (13:03):
And he says when you share with each other in
the suffering, and you hurt when other people hurt. Now
you're loving your neighbors yourself. Pain can teach you how
to really love, because love is not a quiver in
your liver. Love is doing the sacrificial thing. Number three.
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Third way you can use pain for good.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
In your life.
Speaker 1 (13:26):
I can use it to draw closer to God, to
trust him more. That's worship. I can use it to
grow closer to you and be closer in fellowship. Number three,
Use pain to grow deeper like Jesus in your character,
use pain to grow deeper like Jesus. The Bible calls
this discipleship, and every time you're in pain, it is
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an opportunity to work on your attitude, to work on
your virtue, to work on your character. The Bible talks
about the fruit of the spirit nine qualities. The fruit
of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness,
self control. The Bible says, these are what happens when
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the Spirit is living through your life. How does God
build these qualities in your life by putting you the
exact opposite situations. He teaches you love when you're around
unlovely people. He teaches you joy in the middle of grief.
He teaches you patience by putting you in situations where
you have to wait. He teaches every one of these qualities.
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Self control by putting you in a situation where you're
attempting to be not self controlled. Pain is an opportunity
to grow in character like Christ. But again, it's a choice.
When you're in pain, you can be bitter or you
can become better. Pain can be a stepping stone to
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maturity or a stumbling block to immaturity.
Speaker 2 (14:59):
It's not a automatic.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
The Bible says in Proverbs twenty verse thirty. Sometimes it
takes a painful experience to make us change our ways.
Anybody who want to give a testimony on that verse.
Sometimes it takes a painful experience to make us change
our ways. We don't change when we see the light.
We change when we feel the heat. Now, once you
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have come to Christ, you're saved. You're in the body
of Christ. You're in the family of God. You're a
child of God. Once you're in God's family, God's number
one purpose in your life is to make you like
Jesus Christ. You're born again. Now, he wants you to
grow up like father.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
Like son.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
He wants you to have the characteristics of God, the Father.
God wants to make you like Jesus Christ. He's the
perfect model of humanity. Now here's the corollary to that.
If God's going to make me like Jesus, then He's
going to hate me. Through everything Jesus went through. Did
Jesus experience pain?
Speaker 2 (16:05):
Of course he did.
Speaker 1 (16:07):
Did Jesus experience times when he was lonely, Yes, when
he was tempted to be discouraged, Yes, when he was
simply tempted? Yes, did Jesus have people misunderstand him and
criticize him. Yes, if God is going to make you
like Jesus, He's going to take you through everything Jesus
went through. God did not spare Jesus from being criticized,
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from being persecuted. Why would he spare you. He wants
you to grow up in character and be like a son.
The Bible says in Hebrews chapter five, verse eight, even
though Jesus was God's son, he learned obedience from the
things he suffered. We learn obedience through suffering. In fact,
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Hebrews chapter five, verse nine says it like this suffering
made Jesus perfect. And now he can say forever all
who obey him, Now Jesus was perfect.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
What does that mean?
Speaker 1 (17:07):
Well, this word telos in Greek means complete. Suffering made
Jesus complete. There's some things we only learn through pain,
and so we want to draw closer to God, we
want to draw closer to others, but we want.
Speaker 2 (17:22):
To become more like Jesus.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
And God wants to build the character of Christ in
your life, and some of those things can only be
built through pain. In fact, Paul complimented the way that
the Corinthian believers had actually grown through their pain in
tewod Corinthians, chapter seven. He says this verse eleven, Now,
isn't it wonderful all the ways in which this distress?
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They had gone through some major distress there in corinth
isn't it wonderful all the ways in which this distress
has goaded you closer to God?
Speaker 2 (17:55):
That's the first purpose.
Speaker 1 (17:56):
You're more alive, You're more concerned, more sensitive, You're more reverent,
You're more human, you're more passionate, you're more responsible. Looked
at it from any angle. You've come out of this
with purity of heart. I love that message. Translation of
that passage, he says these seven things, being concerned and sensitive,
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and reverent, and human and passionate, responsible, being fully alive
says you want these things in your life that ask
God to use the pain that's in your life to
help you become more like Jesus.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
You see. The fact is pain always transforms us.
Speaker 1 (18:34):
Either for good or bad. It'll make us bitter or better.
As I said, pain never leaves you where it found you.
And Second Corinthians eleven, verses twenty three to twenty eight,
Paul gives the testimony of all of the pain he's
been through. He said, I've been put in jail more often.
I've been whipped times without number. I faced death again
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and again and again.
Speaker 2 (18:56):
Five times.
Speaker 1 (18:57):
I was whipped with thirty nine lashes, three times. I
was beaten with rods once, I was stoned with stones
three times. I was shipwrecked once. I spent a whole
night in the day a drift at sea. And he says,
I faced dangers my entire life from flooded rivers, from robbers,
from angry mobs. I faced dangers in the city and
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in the deserts and on stormy seas, and for people
who claim to be Christians but are not. He said,
I've lived with weariness. I've lived with pain. I've lived
with sleepless nights. I've often been hungry and thirsty. I've
often gone without food. I've often shivered with cold, not
enough clothing to keep me warm. And besides all this,
I've had the daily burden of all of the churches
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that I've started. Then, he says, in response to all
of those things, I mean, you think you had problems
haul did Second Corinthians four verses eight to ten. Here
is his attitude toward it. He said, you know, we're
pressed on every side by trouble. Okay, it just comes
pressing in on us. But we're not crushed, We're not broken.
Speaker 2 (20:06):
Okay. He says, we're perplexed, but we don't give up
and quit.
Speaker 1 (20:10):
He says, we're often confused about life, but we don't
give up even when we don't know the answers. He says,
we're hunted down, but we're never abandoned. God never abandons us.
He says, we get knocked down, but we get up
again and keep going. It's like a boxer. I get
knocked down, but I'm not knocked out, and he says,
we get up again and keep going through suffering. Paul says,
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these bodies of ours constantly share in the death of Jesus,
so that the life of Jesus may also be seen
in our bodies.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
WHOA.
Speaker 1 (20:45):
Those three passages are amazing testimony of resilience.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
What was Paul's secret? What was Paul's.
Speaker 1 (20:52):
Secret of the ability to get back up again? Well,
it was an eternal perspective. He had a greater purpose.
As I said earlier, you can handle unbelievable pain if
you can see a purpose in it. And in Two Corinthians,
Chapter four, verses sixteen to eighteen. Here's the purpose that
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Paul says keeps him going for this reason. This is
the reason we never become discouraged. Even though our physical
being is gradually decaying, yet our spiritual being is being
renewed day after day.
Speaker 2 (21:30):
He said.
Speaker 1 (21:31):
I can't stop the aging process, but I can stay
fresh and renewed in my spirit on the inside. He says,
these temporary troubles we suffer will bring us a tremendous
and eternal glory. The reward in heaven much greater than
the trouble, For we fix our attention not on the
things that are seen, but on the things that are unseen.
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Because what can be seen last only for a time.
It's temporary, but what cannot be seen last forever. This
is the power of growing in Christ when you're in pain,
of seeing a greater perspective that, yes, I'm in pain
right now, but even if I had chronic pain my
entire life, my entire life might be sixty seventy eighty
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at the most ninety years or so. But I'm going
to benefit from it in heaven and receive the rewards
and reap the benefits for trillions of years. He said,
that stuff's going to last forever, so have them greater
perspective when you're in pain. That's not just here. And
now let me give you a fourth reason. Remember the
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five purposes. The fourth purpose is the purpose of using
your life to make a contribution and having a ministry
or having a place of service. You weren't put on
this earth to live a self centered life. So here's
the fourth way you can use pain. Use pain to
be or become more sensitive in serving others. This is
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called redemptive pain. It is the highest and best use
of pain. That when I'm going through pain, rather than
focusing on my pain, I redirect my focus to other
people are in pain. And as I said earlier, pain
sensitizes us. If you have struggled with depression, you're sensitive
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to other people who are depressed. If you have struggled
with physical pain like back pain, then you're sensitive to
other people who've had back pain. If you've gone through
the pain of a divorce, you know what it's like,
and you are sensitive to people who go through the
pain of a divorce. It doesn't matter what pain you've
gone through. Jesus wants to redeem your suffering.
Speaker 2 (23:49):
He doesn't want to waste it. He wants to use it.
Speaker 1 (23:52):
He wants to use it to help other people when
they are in pain.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
Tewod Corinthians, chapter one.
Speaker 1 (24:00):
Verses four to six. It's a powerful passage that says
this God comforts us in all of our troubles so
that we can comfort others. Then when other people are troubled,
we will be able to give them the same comfort
that God has given us.
Speaker 2 (24:18):
You can be sure.
Speaker 1 (24:19):
Paul says that the more we suffer, the more we
suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with
his comfort through Christ. So he says, when we're weighed
down with troubles and pain, he said, it's for your
benefit and salvation. But when God comforts us, it is
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so that we in turn can be an encouragement to you.
Then you can patiently endure the same thing we suffer.
Do not waste your heart, Do not waste your pain.
Let God use it. Your greatest ministry will come out
of your deep this pain. Your greatest ministry will come
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out of your greatest weakness and failing. If you'll be
honest to God, honest to others, and honest to yourself,
it will become your ministry. So I use pain in
my life to draw close to God in worship. I
use pain in my life to draw close to others
in fellowship. When I share my strengths, that doesn't make
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us feel close. But when I share my weakness as
you go, oh, it draws us close. Rick has problems
that if God uses in then maybe God.
Speaker 2 (25:33):
Could use me.
Speaker 1 (25:35):
When you share your pain, it helps you grow in Christ.
And when you use your pain to minister to others
who've gone through the same thing, are going through what
you've already gone through, that's called your ministry.
Speaker 2 (25:48):
Number five.
Speaker 1 (25:49):
God wants you to use pain to witness to the world.
God wants you to use pain to witness to the world.
You see God, God says that our witness comes out
of our weaknesses, not out of our strengths.
Speaker 2 (26:05):
You see, we've got it all backwards.
Speaker 1 (26:07):
We think the world is impressed by how we enjoy prosperity.
Speaker 2 (26:13):
That don't impress the world.
Speaker 1 (26:15):
They see that all around non Christians have that what
actually impresses them is not how we handle prosperity, but
what impresses non believers is how believers handle adversity, not prosperity.
We think our successes give us credibility, but actually it
is our suffering that gives us credibility.
Speaker 2 (26:38):
We think that fame earns.
Speaker 1 (26:40):
Respect, but actually it's faithfulness in tough times that earns respect.
Paul was a pro at this. He was a pro
at using this pain as a witness. He said, I'm
not just going to use it to grow close to
God and to minister to other people. I'm going to
use it as a witness. In Philippians, chapter one, verse twelve,
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Paul writes this, I want you to know, dear brothers
and sisters, that everything that has happened to me here
And where is he when he's writing. He's in a
dungeon in Rome, in prison, chained to a prison guard.
I want you to know, deer brothers and sisters, that
everything that has happened to me here has helped to
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spread the good news. Paul says, I actually use my
pain to model the message that God has given me.
Speaker 2 (27:33):
Model my message.
Speaker 1 (27:34):
See, if Paul had not been chained up in prison,
he wouldn't have written all of those letters that became
the New Testament. He would have been out moving around
from town to town, going around. God allowed him in
that prison so he could write all these prison letters,
which we now read as the New Testament. Paul says
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in two Corinthian sixty four, in everything we do, we
try to show that we're the true servants of God.
That means even in how we handle pain, how we
handle failure, how we handle defeat, how we handle problems,
how we handle our own mistakes, how we handle sin,
how we handle all of the bad things that happen
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in our lives. Anybody can handle good. Doesn't take God's
power to handle good. It takes God's power to patiently endure.
And Paul says, in everything we do, we try to
show we're true servants of God. We patiently endure suffering
and hardship and trouble of every kind. Why because it
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is a witness Just like your deepest ministry will come
out of your deepest hurt, your deepest life message will
come out of your deepest pain. This is real, authentic witnessing.
Now I want you to listen very carefully. Every area
in your life where you've had pain. Never thought about this,
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but it's true. Every area in your life where you've
had pain, you have a testimony. Don't waste your pain.
Don't waste your hurt. There are people all around you
who are going now through what you've already gone through,
and they will listen to your story. You know, the
greatest witness of God's love, the greatest example, the greatest
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demonstration of God's love, was not Jesus's perfect life. The
greatest witness of God's love was not Jesus's sermons. The
greatest witness of God's love were not the miracles of Jesus.
The greatest witness of God's love was the suffering that
Jesus went through on the cross. The same is true
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with you. Let me pray for you, Heavenly Father. I
want to thank you that no matter what we go through,
it may be difficult, but we don't have to be
devastated by it, because you have said, we know that
in all things God works together for the good of
those who love God, who are called according to this purpose.
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You have these five purposes for our lives. May we
grow in Your plan and purpose for our lives, even
in the bad times, even in the painful times. Now
you pray, say, God, help me to use my pain
to draw closer to You. Help me to use my
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pain to learn to trust you more, to depend on
you more, to not run from you, but to run
to you when I am in pain, and when I'm hurting,
to cry out and ask for your help. And then say, Lord,
help me to be honest enough to use my pain
to build relationships, to develop closer connection, to build a
(30:51):
fellowship with other people, To not try to impress people
with my strengths, but to be honest about my weaknesses
and pains and hurts and fears and failures and fumbles
and flaws, and that realizing we draw closer in humility,
not in bragging.
Speaker 2 (31:10):
Help me to use the pain in my life to.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
Draw closer to other people who may be going through
that same pain. Then pray, Lord, help me to become
more like Jesus. I want to grow in character. I
want to grow in love and joy and peace and patience.
And I know that you use even pain in my
life to build character, to build virtue.
Speaker 2 (31:34):
To make me a little more like Jesus.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Do that in my life, Lord, And then pray Lord,
help me to use the pain in my life help
others who are in pain, and whatever I've gone through,
use it to serve others, to take the things that
I've been most afraid of or ashamed of, or running from,
and realizing that you want to actually use that that
(31:59):
they're all a lot of other people going through the
exact same thing in our world today. Help me to
use to use what I've gone through for your glory.
And may my great ministry, greatest ministry come out of
my deepest hurts. And finally, Lord, I want to be
a witness with my weakness. I want to be a
(32:20):
witness with the pain, and help me to look for
ways to find people who are going through things that
I've gone through, and then to step up alongside them
and invite them to know You, to share your love
with them. I want to be a witness, not out
of my successes that I want to be a witness
(32:42):
out of the pain that I've had in my life.
I commit all of this to you, Lord. I know
I can handle pain if I can see the purpose
in it, and I know that there will be great
rewards in heaven. Father, I thank you for these who've
prayed this prayer. And if there's somebody here who listening
to me who has not opened their life that Jesus Christ, yet,
(33:03):
may they right now say Jesus Christ, come into my life.
Just say that, Jesus Christ, come into my life and
replace the painful parts in my heart with your comfort
and your care and your courage. I want to follow
you from this day forward. Jesus, I humbly ask you
(33:23):
to accept me into your family.
Speaker 2 (33:26):
In your name, I pray Amen.
One of the most perplexing questions that people ask is
why is there pain in the world? And why does
a good God allow pain? You know, it's not a
new question. Thousands of years ago, Solomon asked this question
in the Book of Ecclesiastes in the Old Testament. In Ecclesiastes,
Chapter two, verses twenty two and twenty three, he says this,
(00:22):
so what do people get for all their hard work
and their struggles here on earth? Their entire life is
filled with pain, and their work is unbearable, and even
at night their minds don't rest. It all seems so pointless. Now,
many scientific studies have documented that human beings are able
(00:43):
to handle enormous amounts of pain if if if we
know there's a good purpose for that pain. You see,
it's worthless pain, it's arbitrary pain. It's pain that feels pointless,
pain without any purpose. That's the kind of pain that
is so unbearable and so intolerable. When you see a
(01:05):
purpose behind pain, you can handle enormous amounts of it.
For instance, many of you women have given birth to
a child. Giving birth is painful, but women bear that
pain for a great purpose. They bring forth life. Pain
with a purpose is manageable. Pain without a purpose is unmanageable.
(01:26):
No matter what kind of pain you're going through right now,
or no matter what kind of pain you're going to
go through in the future. It may be physical pain,
it may be emotional pain, it may be spiritual pain.
It may be financial or relational or mental mental pain.
You will be far better prepared to handle pain. You'll
(01:47):
be far better prepared to cope with it if you
focus on the potential benefits and the possible purposes of
that pain. I know somebody saying, well, okay, where do
I get the courage and truth to focus on when
I'm in deep pain? Well, the answer is the Bible.
The Bible, the Book of God's Holy Word, is where
(02:11):
you focus to get the purposes and the potentials and
the promises of God. They're all in the Bible to
help you handle the pain that's in life. Romans eight
twenty eight says this, we know that in all things
God works for the good of those who love Him,
who have been called according to His purpose. Now look
(02:34):
at that verse for just a minute. We know that
in all things God works for the good. It doesn't
say all things are good. Obviously, there's a lot of
bad things in the world, and so not everything that
happens in your life is good, And you shouldn't even
act like everything that happens in your life is good.
There's a lot of bad things that happen to you
and other people because there is evil, there is sin
(02:56):
in the world. But the Bible says, we know that
in all things God is working for the good of
those who love him. Now, this is not a promise
for everybody. It's only a promise for those who love Him,
who've been called according to his purpose. But if you
love God and if you're trying to live according to
his purpose, the Bible says God is working in all things,
(03:19):
even the bad things, the evil things, the terrible things,
the sinful things, the painful things of life. God says I,
and I'm working even in all those things for your good.
What is this verse teaching us. It's telling us that
pain can be managed by purpose and on purpose, and
(03:40):
for a purpose. Everybody has problems, but some people profit
from them and some don't. They don't know how to
learn from their losses. Everybody has losses, and some people
learn from them and others don't. Believers who grow are
those who learn how to harvest their hurts. They learn
learn from their losses to profit from problems. They learn
(04:03):
how to improve from their injuries, how to advance from
their adversity, how to gain from their pain. This is
what God wants to do in pain, using the pain
in your life. God doesn't have to create pain. There's
plenty of pain already in the world, but God wants
to use it for good. And this is why the
(04:23):
question Paul asked in Galatians chapter three is so important.
In Galatians chapter three, verse four, Paul says this to
the people there in the church in Galatia. He says,
have you gone through all of this for nothing? Is
it all really for nothing? In other words, have you
wasted the pain in your life? That's a question that
(04:45):
I have to ask myself. It's a question you have
to ask yourself and say, well, is it too late
to change?
Speaker 2 (04:51):
No, it is not.
Speaker 1 (04:52):
It's not too late to change your mind. It's not
too late to start benefiting from the pain. Let's look
at five ways to use your pain for good in
your life, whether it's physical or emotional, or relational, financial,
any kind of pain. God wants to use it five
different ways for good in your life. Now, let me
(05:12):
give you a personal testimony, but I'm going to share
with you today. I know this works from personal experience
as I'm sharing this message right now. This is the
sixth anniversary of when our youngest son died, and that
day was the worst day of our family's life. And
(05:35):
yet we are moving forward, and we're moving forward in
hope because of what we know from God's word, like
the verse I just read, and because of how we've
used that pain for good and for God in our
lives and in the lives of others. So what I'm
sharing with you is from personal experience. Five ways God
(05:58):
wants to use your pain for good. Number one, use
pain to draw closer to God and trust him more.
Use the pain in your life to draw closer to
God and trust him more. You know, when anything painful happens,
(06:19):
you've got a choice. You can either run to God
or you can run from God. And now the second
way never made any sense for me. If you're running
away from God, what are you running to? Who could
help you more in your pain than God? Why not
run to God? But some people, when they're in pain
they run to God. And some people, when they're in pain,
they actually run from God, they run away from Him.
(06:42):
You know, I'll have to tell you, since Matthew died,
I've spent more time personally alone with God than all
of my previous life combined.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
Why.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
Pain has a way of drawing you close to God. Now,
how do you do that? How do you draw closer
to God when you're in pain? Well, the first thing
you do is you just tell Him exactly how you feel.
If you want to argue with God, argue with God. God,
I don't like this, God, I'm mad, I'm upset. That's
a prayer. It's called the prayer of lament. You need
(07:11):
to learn how to worship God in all the phases
of grief. You know, our family did what Paul did
in tewod Corinthians chapter one, in verses eight to ten,
he says this. He talks about a time he was
so depressed.
Speaker 2 (07:26):
He says, we were.
Speaker 1 (07:27):
Crushed and overwhelmed, and we saw how powerless we were
to help ourselves. Ever felt like that, Paul says, but
that was good. What do you mean, crushed, overwhelmed, powerless?
He says, that was good? For then we put everything
into the hands of God, who alone could save us,
and he did help us. One of the first things
(07:50):
our family did after Matthew took his life is we
actually went away on a retreat together as a family,
and we did a surrender to God retreat together where
were saying, God, We're going to put this all in
the hands, all of our brokenness, all of our pain,
all of our hurt, all of our sorrow. Can you
imagine that kind of sorrow? And as a family we
did a surrender to God retreat. Why because pain can
(08:15):
draw you close to God if you'll let it. The
Bible says God is close to the broken hearted. God
is never closer to you than when you're in pain.
And many of you could say pain turned me to Christ.
That's why Paul later says in Second Corinthians, chapter seven,
verse ninety, says, I'm glad not because it hurts you.
(08:35):
I'm glad not because it hurts you, but because the
pain turns you to God. And that's the first thing
you can do. Don't waste your pain, let it turn
you to God. Spend longer times with him, reading the Bible,
studying his word, being quiet, listening to God, being alone
with God. That's what pain can do. It can draw
you closer to God. That's called worship. Number two. The
(08:58):
second way you can use pain for good is to
use pain to draw closer to others. Use pain to
draw closer to others. This is called fellowship. If you
allow it, and if you're honest about the things that
are causing you pain, pain will deepen and mature your
(09:20):
love and your relationships and your sense of community and Poynanea,
it will build authentic relationships. You see, suffering sensitizes you
because it turns you away from being self centered to
all of a sudden, when you've gone through a major pain,
you're sensitized to it in others and you can see
(09:42):
other people in pain, and all of a sudden, you
care more about other people in pain. You know, there's
a sad statistic that about a third of marriages end
up splitting up after the loss of a child because
we all all grieve differently and off and a husband
grieves one way and a wife greaves in another way,
(10:04):
and it causes people to go further and further apart.
But Kay and I, when Matthew died, decided that we
were going to use the pain to actually grow closer
together rather than have it drive us apart. And one
of the things we did is we decided to not
try to talk each other out of our pain. But
(10:27):
when Kay was going through a down moment, a wave
of grief, I would simply walk over to her and
put my arm around her, or just stand by her
and be quiet. I wouldn't say anything. There were no
words to say. It's just the ministry of presents. The
deeper the pain someone is going through, the fewer words
you use. Sometimes people are afraid to go over to
(10:48):
a friend's house when they've lost love and.
Speaker 2 (10:50):
Say, I don't know what to say, don't.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
Say anything, just show up and shut up, just be there.
It's the ministry of presence. They don't need words, they
just need your presence. Like when the night Matthew died
and our small group came over and said, we're spending
the night at your house.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
We're not going to leave you here alone. We're gonna
be with you.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
And they didn't try to preach any sermons or give
us any words of wisdom. They were just there the
ministry of presents, and they slept on our couches and
you know, in our kitchen and everywhere. And I'll never
forget that. And now when Kay and I would go
through different waves of grief. I'm going through grief, she
would come over and just stand with me, or sometimes
(11:34):
a pat on the back or grab my hand, the physical,
you know, touch without.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
Trying to explain something away or.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
Trying to talk somebody out of their pain. Instead of
trying to help somebody get out of their pain. Don't
try to cheer people up when they're in grief. Instead,
try to enter into their grief and feel it with him.
That's how you use pain to build fellowship. That's how
you use pain to build a relationship. That's how you
(12:02):
use pain to get closer to someone, not trying to
talk them out of what they're feeling, but actually you
trying to feel it with them, sharing it with them.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
I will tell you.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
I asked, Kay, why do you think we're so much
closer together after you know, Matthew died.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
She said, because you've been so nice to me.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
But we intentionally worked at strengthening our relationship and we
gave each other grace. And what that means is we
didn't judge each other other's feelings. You see, we often
think our feelings are legitimate, but your feelings are illegitimate.
My fears are rational, your feelings, your fears are irrational.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
No.
Speaker 1 (12:40):
No, we gave each other grace, so you stop judging
each other's feelings and try to feel each other's feelings.
That's what you do in pain to grow it closer relations.
Chapter six, Verse two says this, by helping each other
with your troubles, you truly obey the law of Christ.
Speaker 2 (13:00):
What is the law Christ? Love your neighbor as yourself.
Speaker 1 (13:03):
And he says when you share with each other in
the suffering, and you hurt when other people hurt. Now
you're loving your neighbors yourself. Pain can teach you how
to really love, because love is not a quiver in
your liver. Love is doing the sacrificial thing. Number three.
(13:23):
Third way you can use pain for good.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
In your life.
Speaker 1 (13:26):
I can use it to draw closer to God, to
trust him more. That's worship. I can use it to
grow closer to you and be closer in fellowship. Number three,
Use pain to grow deeper like Jesus in your character,
use pain to grow deeper like Jesus. The Bible calls
this discipleship, and every time you're in pain, it is
(13:51):
an opportunity to work on your attitude, to work on
your virtue, to work on your character. The Bible talks
about the fruit of the spirit nine qualities. The fruit
of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness,
self control. The Bible says, these are what happens when
(14:13):
the Spirit is living through your life. How does God
build these qualities in your life by putting you the
exact opposite situations. He teaches you love when you're around
unlovely people. He teaches you joy in the middle of grief.
He teaches you patience by putting you in situations where
you have to wait. He teaches every one of these qualities.
(14:35):
Self control by putting you in a situation where you're
attempting to be not self controlled. Pain is an opportunity
to grow in character like Christ. But again, it's a choice.
When you're in pain, you can be bitter or you
can become better. Pain can be a stepping stone to
(14:55):
maturity or a stumbling block to immaturity.
Speaker 2 (14:59):
It's not a automatic.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
The Bible says in Proverbs twenty verse thirty. Sometimes it
takes a painful experience to make us change our ways.
Anybody who want to give a testimony on that verse.
Sometimes it takes a painful experience to make us change
our ways. We don't change when we see the light.
We change when we feel the heat. Now, once you
(15:25):
have come to Christ, you're saved. You're in the body
of Christ. You're in the family of God. You're a
child of God. Once you're in God's family, God's number
one purpose in your life is to make you like
Jesus Christ. You're born again. Now, he wants you to
grow up like father.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
Like son.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
He wants you to have the characteristics of God, the Father.
God wants to make you like Jesus Christ. He's the
perfect model of humanity. Now here's the corollary to that.
If God's going to make me like Jesus, then He's
going to hate me. Through everything Jesus went through. Did
Jesus experience pain?
Speaker 2 (16:05):
Of course he did.
Speaker 1 (16:07):
Did Jesus experience times when he was lonely, Yes, when
he was tempted to be discouraged, Yes, when he was
simply tempted? Yes, did Jesus have people misunderstand him and
criticize him. Yes, if God is going to make you
like Jesus, He's going to take you through everything Jesus
went through. God did not spare Jesus from being criticized,
(16:30):
from being persecuted. Why would he spare you. He wants
you to grow up in character and be like a son.
The Bible says in Hebrews chapter five, verse eight, even
though Jesus was God's son, he learned obedience from the
things he suffered. We learn obedience through suffering. In fact,
(16:54):
Hebrews chapter five, verse nine says it like this suffering
made Jesus perfect. And now he can say forever all
who obey him, Now Jesus was perfect.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
What does that mean?
Speaker 1 (17:07):
Well, this word telos in Greek means complete. Suffering made
Jesus complete. There's some things we only learn through pain,
and so we want to draw closer to God, we
want to draw closer to others, but we want.
Speaker 2 (17:22):
To become more like Jesus.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
And God wants to build the character of Christ in
your life, and some of those things can only be
built through pain. In fact, Paul complimented the way that
the Corinthian believers had actually grown through their pain in
tewod Corinthians, chapter seven. He says this verse eleven, Now,
isn't it wonderful all the ways in which this distress?
(17:47):
They had gone through some major distress there in corinth
isn't it wonderful all the ways in which this distress
has goaded you closer to God?
Speaker 2 (17:55):
That's the first purpose.
Speaker 1 (17:56):
You're more alive, You're more concerned, more sensitive, You're more reverent,
You're more human, you're more passionate, you're more responsible. Looked
at it from any angle. You've come out of this
with purity of heart. I love that message. Translation of
that passage, he says these seven things, being concerned and sensitive,
(18:18):
and reverent, and human and passionate, responsible, being fully alive
says you want these things in your life that ask
God to use the pain that's in your life to
help you become more like Jesus.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
You see. The fact is pain always transforms us.
Speaker 1 (18:34):
Either for good or bad. It'll make us bitter or better.
As I said, pain never leaves you where it found you.
And Second Corinthians eleven, verses twenty three to twenty eight,
Paul gives the testimony of all of the pain he's
been through. He said, I've been put in jail more often.
I've been whipped times without number. I faced death again
(18:55):
and again and again.
Speaker 2 (18:56):
Five times.
Speaker 1 (18:57):
I was whipped with thirty nine lashes, three times. I
was beaten with rods once, I was stoned with stones
three times. I was shipwrecked once. I spent a whole
night in the day a drift at sea. And he says,
I faced dangers my entire life from flooded rivers, from robbers,
from angry mobs. I faced dangers in the city and
(19:21):
in the deserts and on stormy seas, and for people
who claim to be Christians but are not. He said,
I've lived with weariness. I've lived with pain. I've lived
with sleepless nights. I've often been hungry and thirsty. I've
often gone without food. I've often shivered with cold, not
enough clothing to keep me warm. And besides all this,
I've had the daily burden of all of the churches
(19:43):
that I've started. Then, he says, in response to all
of those things, I mean, you think you had problems
haul did Second Corinthians four verses eight to ten. Here
is his attitude toward it. He said, you know, we're
pressed on every side by trouble. Okay, it just comes
pressing in on us. But we're not crushed, We're not broken.
Speaker 2 (20:06):
Okay. He says, we're perplexed, but we don't give up
and quit.
Speaker 1 (20:10):
He says, we're often confused about life, but we don't
give up even when we don't know the answers. He says,
we're hunted down, but we're never abandoned. God never abandons us.
He says, we get knocked down, but we get up
again and keep going. It's like a boxer. I get
knocked down, but I'm not knocked out, and he says,
we get up again and keep going through suffering. Paul says,
(20:32):
these bodies of ours constantly share in the death of Jesus,
so that the life of Jesus may also be seen
in our bodies.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
WHOA.
Speaker 1 (20:45):
Those three passages are amazing testimony of resilience.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
What was Paul's secret? What was Paul's.
Speaker 1 (20:52):
Secret of the ability to get back up again? Well,
it was an eternal perspective. He had a greater purpose.
As I said earlier, you can handle unbelievable pain if
you can see a purpose in it. And in Two Corinthians,
Chapter four, verses sixteen to eighteen. Here's the purpose that
(21:13):
Paul says keeps him going for this reason. This is
the reason we never become discouraged. Even though our physical
being is gradually decaying, yet our spiritual being is being
renewed day after day.
Speaker 2 (21:30):
He said.
Speaker 1 (21:31):
I can't stop the aging process, but I can stay
fresh and renewed in my spirit on the inside. He says,
these temporary troubles we suffer will bring us a tremendous
and eternal glory. The reward in heaven much greater than
the trouble, For we fix our attention not on the
things that are seen, but on the things that are unseen.
(21:53):
Because what can be seen last only for a time.
It's temporary, but what cannot be seen last forever. This
is the power of growing in Christ when you're in pain,
of seeing a greater perspective that, yes, I'm in pain
right now, but even if I had chronic pain my
entire life, my entire life might be sixty seventy eighty
(22:15):
at the most ninety years or so. But I'm going
to benefit from it in heaven and receive the rewards
and reap the benefits for trillions of years. He said,
that stuff's going to last forever, so have them greater
perspective when you're in pain. That's not just here. And
now let me give you a fourth reason. Remember the
(22:36):
five purposes. The fourth purpose is the purpose of using
your life to make a contribution and having a ministry
or having a place of service. You weren't put on
this earth to live a self centered life. So here's
the fourth way you can use pain. Use pain to
be or become more sensitive in serving others. This is
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called redemptive pain. It is the highest and best use
of pain. That when I'm going through pain, rather than
focusing on my pain, I redirect my focus to other
people are in pain. And as I said earlier, pain
sensitizes us. If you have struggled with depression, you're sensitive
(23:25):
to other people who are depressed. If you have struggled
with physical pain like back pain, then you're sensitive to
other people who've had back pain. If you've gone through
the pain of a divorce, you know what it's like,
and you are sensitive to people who go through the
pain of a divorce. It doesn't matter what pain you've
gone through. Jesus wants to redeem your suffering.
Speaker 2 (23:49):
He doesn't want to waste it. He wants to use it.
Speaker 1 (23:52):
He wants to use it to help other people when
they are in pain.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
Tewod Corinthians, chapter one.
Speaker 1 (24:00):
Verses four to six. It's a powerful passage that says
this God comforts us in all of our troubles so
that we can comfort others. Then when other people are troubled,
we will be able to give them the same comfort
that God has given us.
Speaker 2 (24:18):
You can be sure.
Speaker 1 (24:19):
Paul says that the more we suffer, the more we
suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with
his comfort through Christ. So he says, when we're weighed
down with troubles and pain, he said, it's for your
benefit and salvation. But when God comforts us, it is
(24:43):
so that we in turn can be an encouragement to you.
Then you can patiently endure the same thing we suffer.
Do not waste your heart, Do not waste your pain.
Let God use it. Your greatest ministry will come out
of your deep this pain. Your greatest ministry will come
(25:03):
out of your greatest weakness and failing. If you'll be
honest to God, honest to others, and honest to yourself,
it will become your ministry. So I use pain in
my life to draw close to God in worship. I
use pain in my life to draw close to others
in fellowship. When I share my strengths, that doesn't make
(25:26):
us feel close. But when I share my weakness as
you go, oh, it draws us close. Rick has problems
that if God uses in then maybe God.
Speaker 2 (25:33):
Could use me.
Speaker 1 (25:35):
When you share your pain, it helps you grow in Christ.
And when you use your pain to minister to others
who've gone through the same thing, are going through what
you've already gone through, that's called your ministry.
Speaker 2 (25:48):
Number five.
Speaker 1 (25:49):
God wants you to use pain to witness to the world.
God wants you to use pain to witness to the world.
You see God, God says that our witness comes out
of our weaknesses, not out of our strengths.
Speaker 2 (26:05):
You see, we've got it all backwards.
Speaker 1 (26:07):
We think the world is impressed by how we enjoy prosperity.
Speaker 2 (26:13):
That don't impress the world.
Speaker 1 (26:15):
They see that all around non Christians have that what
actually impresses them is not how we handle prosperity, but
what impresses non believers is how believers handle adversity, not prosperity.
We think our successes give us credibility, but actually it
is our suffering that gives us credibility.
Speaker 2 (26:38):
We think that fame earns.
Speaker 1 (26:40):
Respect, but actually it's faithfulness in tough times that earns respect.
Paul was a pro at this. He was a pro
at using this pain as a witness. He said, I'm
not just going to use it to grow close to
God and to minister to other people. I'm going to
use it as a witness. In Philippians, chapter one, verse twelve,
(27:03):
Paul writes this, I want you to know, dear brothers
and sisters, that everything that has happened to me here
And where is he when he's writing. He's in a
dungeon in Rome, in prison, chained to a prison guard.
I want you to know, deer brothers and sisters, that
everything that has happened to me here has helped to
(27:24):
spread the good news. Paul says, I actually use my
pain to model the message that God has given me.
Speaker 2 (27:33):
Model my message.
Speaker 1 (27:34):
See, if Paul had not been chained up in prison,
he wouldn't have written all of those letters that became
the New Testament. He would have been out moving around
from town to town, going around. God allowed him in
that prison so he could write all these prison letters,
which we now read as the New Testament. Paul says
(27:55):
in two Corinthian sixty four, in everything we do, we
try to show that we're the true servants of God.
That means even in how we handle pain, how we
handle failure, how we handle defeat, how we handle problems,
how we handle our own mistakes, how we handle sin,
how we handle all of the bad things that happen
(28:17):
in our lives. Anybody can handle good. Doesn't take God's
power to handle good. It takes God's power to patiently endure.
And Paul says, in everything we do, we try to
show we're true servants of God. We patiently endure suffering
and hardship and trouble of every kind. Why because it
(28:38):
is a witness Just like your deepest ministry will come
out of your deepest hurt, your deepest life message will
come out of your deepest pain. This is real, authentic witnessing.
Now I want you to listen very carefully. Every area
in your life where you've had pain. Never thought about this,
(29:01):
but it's true. Every area in your life where you've
had pain, you have a testimony. Don't waste your pain.
Don't waste your hurt. There are people all around you
who are going now through what you've already gone through,
and they will listen to your story. You know, the
greatest witness of God's love, the greatest example, the greatest
(29:24):
demonstration of God's love, was not Jesus's perfect life. The
greatest witness of God's love was not Jesus's sermons. The
greatest witness of God's love were not the miracles of Jesus.
The greatest witness of God's love was the suffering that
Jesus went through on the cross. The same is true
(29:46):
with you. Let me pray for you, Heavenly Father. I
want to thank you that no matter what we go through,
it may be difficult, but we don't have to be
devastated by it, because you have said, we know that
in all things God works together for the good of
those who love God, who are called according to this purpose.
(30:08):
You have these five purposes for our lives. May we
grow in Your plan and purpose for our lives, even
in the bad times, even in the painful times. Now
you pray, say, God, help me to use my pain
to draw closer to You. Help me to use my
(30:28):
pain to learn to trust you more, to depend on
you more, to not run from you, but to run
to you when I am in pain, and when I'm hurting,
to cry out and ask for your help. And then say, Lord,
help me to be honest enough to use my pain
to build relationships, to develop closer connection, to build a
(30:51):
fellowship with other people, To not try to impress people
with my strengths, but to be honest about my weaknesses
and pains and hurts and fears and failures and fumbles
and flaws, and that realizing we draw closer in humility,
not in bragging.
Speaker 2 (31:10):
Help me to use the pain in my life to.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
Draw closer to other people who may be going through
that same pain. Then pray, Lord, help me to become
more like Jesus. I want to grow in character. I
want to grow in love and joy and peace and patience.
And I know that you use even pain in my
life to build character, to build virtue.
Speaker 2 (31:34):
To make me a little more like Jesus.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Do that in my life, Lord, And then pray Lord,
help me to use the pain in my life help
others who are in pain, and whatever I've gone through,
use it to serve others, to take the things that
I've been most afraid of or ashamed of, or running from,
and realizing that you want to actually use that that
(31:59):
they're all a lot of other people going through the
exact same thing in our world today. Help me to
use to use what I've gone through for your glory.
And may my great ministry, greatest ministry come out of
my deepest hurts. And finally, Lord, I want to be
a witness with my weakness. I want to be a
(32:20):
witness with the pain, and help me to look for
ways to find people who are going through things that
I've gone through, and then to step up alongside them
and invite them to know You, to share your love
with them. I want to be a witness, not out
of my successes that I want to be a witness
(32:42):
out of the pain that I've had in my life.
I commit all of this to you, Lord. I know
I can handle pain if I can see the purpose
in it, and I know that there will be great
rewards in heaven. Father, I thank you for these who've
prayed this prayer. And if there's somebody here who listening
to me who has not opened their life that Jesus Christ, yet,
(33:03):
may they right now say Jesus Christ, come into my life.
Just say that, Jesus Christ, come into my life and
replace the painful parts in my heart with your comfort
and your care and your courage. I want to follow
you from this day forward. Jesus, I humbly ask you
(33:23):
to accept me into your family.
Speaker 2 (33:26):
In your name, I pray Amen.
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