Pain & Loss

Pain.
We all feel it at one point or another.
We see it in others.
We hear about others experiencing it.
The Holy Spirit speaks to us and tells us about people dealing with it.
We even cause it in others.

Loss.
Can be caused by pain & it can cause pain.
We can lose a friend over an argument.
We can lose a family member to death.
We can lose faith, lose a job, lose a competition, lose love.
We can lose anything and everything.

The bottom line is that Pain and Loss go hand in hand.

What do we do with pain? How do we cope with loss? How can we deal with such strong emotions? Why does God allow such hurtful circumstances to consume us and cripple us to our knees?

I honestly never had an answer to this question until a few weeks ago. I never really comprehended why God allows pain and loss in our lives until I saw it first hand from a friend. A friend who God is healing from pain. A situation that is horrible, but a person that Jesus is healing and using to spread His own name to others. Lives of others are being changed and relationships with Jesus are made stronger through my friend's situation. Jesus is being glorified through my friends pain and healing. The Holy Spirit brought this to my attention through my friend last month and on the same day I read Philippians chapter 1.

Philippians 1 starting with verse 12 (yes click there) is about Paul being in prison for preaching the word of Christ Jesus. That Paul was in chains, in pain, and lost his freedom. Paul could be in a dark place spiritually, blaming God and Jesus for his pain and loss. But he doesn't. Paul realizes and teaches us that Jesus has put him in chains for a reason.

Jesus has put us in pain and put us through loss for a specific reason.

That reason is to spread and proclaim the name of Jesus. To trust him completely. I learned through Philippians 1:12-30 that Jesus places us in every situation to mold us into Godly people. Jesus allows pain and lose to enter our lives so that people around us can see Him at his core - healing us while in pain. Pain and loss are allowed into our lives so that we can glorify Jesus through every situation. This passage helped me to realize that Hell is worse than whatever pain and loss we experience in life. And as long as we aren't in Hell, we are shown the grace and glory of Jesus Christ.

Now, for me, knowing that I can glorify Jesus in my pain and loss doesn't simply make me feel better, or cause the pain to cease. The Holy Spirit explained to me that the Lord has placed us in every situation so that He may mold us into the Godly individuals He knows we'll become, so that Jesus will be proclaimed and glorified, and that we will trust Him each step (big, small, hard, easy) of the way.

Pain is hard. Pain is dark and hurtful. Pain can lead to loss. Loss can cause doubt, fear, and anger.

Jesus is bigger then pain. Jesus is the regain to our loss - He will seize our loss and blossom it into His glory. We've got to have faith in Him. We've got to trust in Him. We've got to seek Him.

Trust Him. Let Jesus do what we can't see. Explain the loss and pain to Him - talk to Him like a friend.

Let Him heal you.