Pain with a Purpose

I’ve watched people at Community go through seriously difficult circumstances, and yet, in their pain they find purpose. Let me share with you a couple of keys to this kind of a response when life throws you a curveball.

First of all, a common theme, no matter the pain, is these people keep their eyes on Jesus. That may sound obvious, but it’s not. Most people keep their eyes on the pain. They get lost in their circumstances. However, when you keep your eyes on Jesus you have the ability to see past the pain, to learn from it, to serve from it.

Another key is to watch for opportunities to help others. This is not “natural.” Again, we want to wallow in our pain, but when we serve others, healing begins in our own life.

One more thing I’ve noticed: People who find purpose in their pain have an extraordinary ability to be grateful. That doesn’t mean we like the pain, or invite it. It just means we can see things to be thankful for even when life hurts. Count your blessings…it helps!

“All praise to the God and Father of our Master, Jesus the Messiah! Father of all mercy! God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. We have plenty of hard times that come from following the Messiah, but no more so than the good times of his healing comfort—we get a full measure of that, too.”  (2 Corinthians 1:3-5 MSG)