Pain And Purpose

Pray for our president.

When I was five years old the neighbor’s red Chow dog took at least six bites out of my arms and legs. When I was seven I broke my left foot, (I broke it again when I was nineteen, and when I was around forty).  At twenty-two year of age I had difficult relationships with several relatives, which caused not only emotional pain, but also physical pain.  I came down with fibromyalgia in my late thirties.    At twenty-eight I gave birth to our daughter and at thirty-four our son.  These events and others caused suffering in my life.  Some were unpleasant for a short period of time and some were prolonged. Everyone will experience some type of pain in life.

One way to deal with the trials is to write.  Most authors choose a theme which will show the pain which causes conflict—Man versus Man, Man versus Nature, Man versus Society, or Man versus Self, to name a few.  In our narratives we see that distress, often times, will lead to us turning to God or away from God.  We have the freedom to choose.

So now we have the awful experiences of shootings, terrorists, corruption, greed, and other terrible events in the world to deal with on a daily basis. To me it looks like the world and all those who live in it are becoming worse instead of better.  But there is hope, and here’s why—Matthew 24: 4-8:

“Jesus came out from the temple and was going away ^[a]when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. ² And He said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.”

³ As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the ^[b]end of the age?”

⁴ And Jesus answered and said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you. ⁵ For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the ^[c]Christ,’ and will mislead many. ⁶ You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. ⁷ For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. ⁸ But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.”

Jesus told us that these things would happen-- but we are not to be frightened.  God is in control and will work all things out for His own purposes—Romans 8:28—“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” All we have to do is ask God for the faith to trust Him.  He loves us.  The proof is that Jesus died to pay the price for our sins and His righteousness rests on us if we believe.