A Purpose for the Pain?

One word
Frees us of all the weight and pain of life:
That word is love. - SOPHOCLES, Oedipus at Colonus

 

We’ve all seen it, but we may not have liked it or wanted to accept it. I know I didn’t. It says, “God has a purpose for your pain,” or something like that. 

To my way of thinking, the inference is that God planned for you to be in pain in order to accomplish His purpose. I didn’t like that inference.

That is not to say that pain is a bad thing, necessarily.  It feels bad, but it does have a purpose. 

The old mill served its purpose at one time.

Usually, it’s to let you know something is wrong. Take, for example, the case of the horrific pain of a gall bladder attack, like the one my husband had recently. If you don’t do something about it soon, you are going to be in serious trouble. 

Whether it is physical, emotional, or spiritual, pain lets us know that we are alive. It may also mean something has to go. Like the gall bladder. 

But, what if the pain is associated with something we have loved and guarded, like a relationship or a dream we have had? Maybe it’s something we had hoped to do with our life that may now seem impossible. Then, we tend to hold on in spite of the pain. 

We may eventually come to realize that letting go is the only humane choice. Either it dies or we do. 

We have tried everything to keep it alive, but it is time to put it out of its misery. So, we pull the plug at last, knowing deep down inside, only a miracle can save it; only God can breathe life into it. If He doesn’t, it’s for the best. There is no pain in death.

Only then do we begin to understand the real purpose. It was to extricate us from the thing we held on to so tightly He had to pry our grip loose. We thought we would die without it. We didn’t.

He was merciful to allow us to keep it for as long as we did. We needed something to hold on to and He let us hold it. The pain was to let us know we could not keep it any longer.  We were the only thing keeping it alive. Then, like a mother does with an unborn babe, we carried it to its time. The pain came and we delivered. What we carried now lives a different life. The pain served its purpose and is gone.

We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28 HCSB).

The LORD is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit (Psalm 34:18 NAS).  This is my comfort in my affliction, for your word has revived me (Psalm 119:50 New Heart English Bible).

He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever (Revelation 21:4 NLT).
 

Excerpt from While it Is Called Today 

a 30-day photo-devotional

by Dee Marvin Emeigh

Made Perfect

“Our lives, our brokenness, our flaws, and failures

are precisely what God designed to reflect a perfect love.” – Peter Adejimi

A Black Swallow-Tail gathers nectar from a crepe myrtle.

At first, I didn’t notice the imperfections. My delight in the translucent wings fluttering in front of me as I walked obscured them. Even as I edited the photo later, I didn’t notice them right away. But, as I focused more on the details and the color, I saw her wing was torn. She was obviously flying with an imperfect, torn wing! 

Perhaps it was because the lovely, pink buds of the crepe myrtle made up for what her wings lacked, but it was hardly noticeable in the grand scheme of color and light. 

I’ve known what it’s like to have torn wings. It feels like you will never fly again, never become all you were meant to be. You know you’re not perfect, but everyone seems to only focus on those imperfections. 

You may know what that feels like, as well. The very ability you were created to display has been stifled and all but destroyed.

In spite of Jesus’ declaration that we should be perfect even as our Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48), perfection is something we will not achieve on this earth. So, do we just give up and stop trying? Do we go back to the cocoon and begin again? Neither of these things is possible if we truly desire to be in the glorious state of perfection. 

The Pulpit Commentary (48 vols. London, 1880-97) notes: “Perfect… The word denotes those who have attained the full development of innate powers, in contrast to those who are still in the undeveloped state - adults in contrast to children. Thus the thought here is - Ye shall be satisfied with, and shall attain to, no lower state than that of maturity.” 

Perfection, then, is a state of maturity, not of doing everything perfectly, but of being spiritually mature. 

In the context of Matthew 5:48, the statement refers to loving others even though they have done you wrong. Nothing less is acceptable. This is how the Father God is. He sends rain and sun on all alike. He is no respecter of persons. 

Jesus didn’t stop to ask the multitudes if they would all like to become holy before He healed them. He healed them and had compassion on them, even though many would soon turn against Him. His love went only one direction: from the Father to the children. He walked in the full state of maturity, where He became the expression of His Father’s love. 

Taking our focus off our own imperfections and allowing God’s perfect, mature love to flow through us gives us translucent wings. His light shines through us, we are made perfect by it, and we are able to fly again.

Matthew 5:44-48 “But I tell you this: Love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you. In this way you show that you are children of your Father in heaven. He makes his sun rise on people whether they are good or evil. He lets rain fall on them whether they are just or unjust.  If you love those who love you, do you deserve a reward? Even the tax collectors do that!  Are you doing anything remarkable if you welcome only your friends? Everyone does that!  That is why you must be perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect” (God’s Word).

John 17:25-26 “Good Father, the people of this world don’t know you. But I know you, and my followers know that you sent me. I told them what you are like, and I will tell them even more. Then the love that you have for me will become part of them, and I will be one with them” (Contemporary English Version).

Isaiah 60:1-2 “Arise, shine, for your light has broken through! The Eternal One’s brilliance has dawned upon you. See truly; look carefully—darkness blankets the earth; people all over are cloaked in darkness. But God will rise and shine on you; the Eternal’s bright glory will shine on you, a light for all to see” (The Voice).

Excerpt from:

While it is Called Today - a 30-day photo devotional for living well 

by Dee Marvin Emeigh

(c) 2014 Dee Marvin Emeigh

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www.livwellseedco.com