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"Praise be to the God and
Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ
who comforts
us in all our troubles, so
that we can
comfort those in any
trouble with the comfort
we ourselves have received
from God."
~
II Corinthians 1:3-4
We all experience pain in
some form or fashion
during our lives. Whether
it is death, illness, or
loss of jobs, financial
loss, or broken
relationships. We see bad
things happening all
around us, from innocent
children being murdered,
to school shootings, or
everyday crimes against
innocent. The Bible gives
us several messages during
our times of pain.
Beloved, do not think it
strange concerning the
fiery trial which is to
try you, as though some
strange thing happened to
you, but rejoice to the
extent that you partake of
Christ's suffering.
I Peter 4:12-13
Though I walk in the midst
of trouble, You will
revive me; You will
stretch out Your hand
against the wrath of my
enemies, and Your right
hand will save me.
Psalm 128:7
Laura Lewis Lanier (All
Things Bright and
Beautiful) writes;
"While spending time
painting in the area of
Italy known as Tuscany, I
became accustomed to
seeing grape vines growing
on the hillsides. The
older gnarled vines were
beautiful to sketch
because of their knotty
twists and bends. Over the
course of time, the winds,
rains and sun-the
weathering effects of the
seasons-had forced their
shapes. The most luscious
growth came from the
rugged old vines...grapes
so heavy and bountiful
they seemed to invite
people to pick them.
In another vineyard were
young plants which had
suffered no ill effects of
nature at all. They
offered no particular
beauty or character and
were hardly worthy of my
pencil or paintbrush. As
it is in nature, so it is
in God's kingdom. From the
winds and rains of
adversity comes abundant
growth and a beautiful
life worth painting. Do
not be afraid to
suffer...It is from being
shaken apart and not being
destroyed that one becomes
strong and courageous."
The Lord is near to those
who have a broken heart,
and saves such as have a
contrite spirit. many are
the afflictions of the
righteous, but the Lord
delivers him out of them
all.
Psalms 34:18-19
Come to Me, all you who
labor and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest.
Take My yoke upon you and
learn from Me, for I am
gently and lowly in heart,
and you will find rest for
your souls.
Matthew 11:28-29
And the ransomed of the
Lord shall return, and
come to Zion with singing,
with everlasting joy on
their heads. They shall
obtain joy and gladness,
and sorrow and sighing
shall flee away.
Isaiah 35:10
Verdell Davis of (Riches
Stored in Secret Places)
"When we stand in the
middle of a life storm
(death, violated
relationships, children
born with disabilities and
deformities, disease,
man's inhumanity to man,
moral failures, tragedies,
chaos), it seems as if the
storm has become our way
of life. We cannot see a
way out. We are unable to
chart a course back to
smoother waters. We feel
defeated - and broken.
Will that brokenness
produce a cynicism that
will keep us forever in
the mire of "if only"
thinking? Or will we yield
up that brokenness to the
resources of One who calms
the winds and the waves,
heels the brokenhearted,
and forgives the most
grievous of sins? The
choice is ours."
The Lord also will be a
refuge for the oppressed,
a refuge in times of
trouble. And those who
know Your name will put
their trust in You; for
You, Lord, have not
forsaken those who seek
You.
Psalm 9:9-10
In the day when I cried
out, You answered me, and
made me bold with strength
in my soul. Psalm
138:3
The Lord will guide you
continually, and satisfy
your soul in drought, and
strengthen you bones; you
shall be like a watered
garden, and like a spring
of water, whose waters do
not fail. Isaiah
58:11
And He said to me, "My
grace is sufficient for
you, for My strength is
made perfect in weakness."
Therefore most gladly I
will rather boast in my
infirmities, that the
power of Christ may rest
upon me. I Cor 12:9
The Lord will perfect that
which concerns me; Your
mercy, O Lord, endures
forever; do not forsake
the works of Your hands.
Psalm 138:8
To
become strong in the
broken places in our lives
demands that we do two
things, seeming opposites;
hang in there, and let go.
To somehow dig up the
courage to keep going is
the very courage that
allows us to scoop up the
broken pieces of our lives
and lay them all at the
feet of One who would do
more in us than just get
us through the storm. As
James Means said, He would
take the fire that
blackens our horizons and
warm our souls with it. he
would sharpen our vision
in the darkness that
oppresses us. He would use
the despair of standing at
a grave to deepen our
trust. This we cannot do
for ourselves. Perhaps
because our brokenness
brings us to the end of
ourselves, it is here, in
these jars of clay that we
offer up to His very
special grace, that God's
all-surpassing power is
made known and He, indeed,
makes us strong in our
broken places.
Verdell Davis (Riches
Stored in Secret Places)
When
you pass through the
waters, I will be with
you; and through the
rivers, they will not
overflow you. when you
walk through the fire, you
shall not be burned; nor
shall the flame scorch
you. Isaiah 43:2
Though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of
death, I will fear no
evil; for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff,
they comfort me.
Psalm 23:4
All God's children will go
through deep waters at one
time or another. God never
allows His children to
swim alone. It is us, His
children, unfortunately,
leave God, then ask "Why
did God leave me"? Like
the beautiful poem
"Footprints in the Sand"
talks about...God was
right there all along. God
says He will be with us,
whenever, wherever, and
forever.
And
not only so, but we glory
in tribulations also;
knowing that tribulation
worketh patience; and
patience, experience; and
experience, hop; And hope
maketh not ashamed;
because the love of God is
shed abroad in our hearts
by the Holy Ghost which is
given unto us.
Romans 5:3-5
My
brethren, count it all joy
when ye fall into fivers
temptations; Knowing this,
that the trying of your
faith worketh patience.
But let patience have her
perfect work, that ye may
be perfect and entire,
wanting nothing.
James 1:2-4
The above is an amazing
scripture. Count it Joy?
How could we possibly
count it joy to be going
through difficult trials
of pain and suffering? But
this scripture teaches us
that that the trials test
our faith and help us
develop perseverance, and
that perseverance must be
complete so that we may
become complete.
PAIN
Suffering can reveal what
is in the deep crevices of
our hearts. Emotions of
anger and pride,
bitterness and envy. Or it
can yield love and mercy,
joy and thanksgiving.
Can't you truly sympathize
with one who is suffering
from a headache or
toothache after you've had
a horrible experience with
one? We can't be
empathetic with others if
we haven't suffered the
same?
Pottery is made perfect or
complete by fire. Our
hearts are revealed and
shaped by enduring the
trials of this world. We
are the clay and God is
our Potter.
The
following story is a great
example of how the
Lord
teaches and molds us
through life's trials.
There was a group of
women in a
Bible
study on the book of
Malachi. As they were
studying chapter three,
they came across verse
three which says: "He
will sit as a refiner
and purifier of silver."
(Malachi
3:3)
This verse puzzled the
women and they wondered
what this statement
meant about the
character and nature of
God.
One of the women offered
to find out about the
process of refining
silver and get back to
the group at their next
Bible study. That week
this woman called up a
silver smith and made an
appointment to watch him
at work. She didn't
mention anything about
the reason for her
interest in silver
beyond her curiosity
about the process of
refining silver. As she
watched the silver
smith, he held a piece
of silver over the fire
and let it heat up. He
explained that in
refining silver, one
needed to hold the
silver in the middle of
the fire where the
flames were hottest as
to burn away all the
impurities. The woman
thought about God
holding us in such a hot
spot--then she thought
again about the verse,
that he sits as a
refiner and purifier of
silver.
She asked the silver
smith if it was true
that he had to sit there
in front of the fire the
whole time the silver
was being refined. The
man answered that yes,
he not only had to sit
there holding the
silver, but he had to
keep his eyes on the
silver the entire time
it was in the fire. If
the silver was left even
a moment too long in the
flames, it would be
destroyed. The woman was
silent for a moment.
Then she asked the
silver smith, "How do
you know when the silver
is fully refined?"
He smiled at her and
answered, "Oh, that's
easy--when I see my
image in it."
Author Unknown
If today you are feeling
the heat of the fire,
remember that God has
His eye on you. When God
can see his image in us,
then maybe we are
perfect and complete.
Would we still call on
God if we didn't suffer,
if we were complete? So
when we are in the heat,
under trying times, that
is why we should count
it joy, because God is
perfecting us, so he can
see his image in us. I
want to reflect God's
image.
It
is good for me that I
been afflicted; that I
might learn thy
statutes.
Psalms 119:71
Blessed be God, even the
Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the Father of
mercies, and the God of
all comfort; Who
comforteth us in all or
tribulations, that we
may be able to comfort
them which are in any
trouble, by the comfort
wherewith we ourselves
are comforted of God.
I Corinthians 1: 3-4
THANK
YOU FOR THE VALLEY
Thank
you for the valley I
walked through today.
The darker the valley,
the more I learned to
pray.
I found you where the
lilies are, Blooming by
the way,
And I thank you for the
valley I walked through
today.
Thank
you for every hill I
climbed.
For every time the sun
didn't shine.
Thank you for every
lonely night.
I prayed 'til I knew
everything was all
right.
Life
can't be all sunshine.
All the flowers would
die.
The rivers would be
deserts, all barren and
dry.
Life can't be all
blessings or, there'd be
no need to pray.
So I thank you for the
valley I walked through
today.
Thank
you for every hill I
climbed.
For every time the sun
didn't shine.
Thank you for every
lonely night.
I prayed 'til I knew
everything was all
right.
Thank
you for the valley, I
walked through today.
(Author unknown.)
IT'S
IN THE VALLEYS I GROW
Sometimes life seems
hard to bear,
Full of sorrow, trouble
and woe
It's then I have to
remember
That it's in the valleys
I grow.
If I
always stayed on the
mountain top
And never experienced
pain,
I would never appreciate
God's love
And would be living in
vain.
I have
so much to learn
And my growth is very
slow,
Sometimes I need the
mountain tops,
But it's in the valleys
I grow.
I do
not always understand
Why things happen as
they do,
But I am very sure of
one thing.
God will see me through.
My
little valleys are
nothing
When I picture Jesus on
the cross
He went through the
valley of death;
His victory was Satan's
loss.
Forgive me Lord, for
complaining
When I'm feeling so very
low.
Just give me a gentle
reminder
That it's in the valleys
I grow.
Continue to strengthen
me, Father
And use my life each day
To share your love with
others
And help them find their
way.
Thank
you for valleys, Lord
For this one thing I
know
The mountain tops are
glorious
But it's in the valleys
I grow!
--Author: Jane Eggleston
The
banners below will take
you to two very
encouraging websites for
those of us dealing with
daily pain of chronic
illness and disease.
If
your life hurts from
other situations such as
loss of loved ones,
depression, tragedy's
and death, and the
scriptures and sayings
were not enough to
help...please continue
in Bible study and
prayer and God will show
you how to find a way to become
encouraged and hopeful
again. There is an
abundance of "inspiring
and encouraging" web
sites out there, and
self help books
available. I've read a
few myself. But the best
of all is the Bible,
God's word, prayer, and
the prayer from your
brothers and sisters in
Christ. If you are not a
Christian and would like
to know how to become
one, please email me and
I will send you
information.
Creating this webpage
has been an inspiration
for me. I've had quite a
few trials over the past
few years. I truly
believe it is those
trials and tribulations
that lead to my
Fibromyalgia. I
cannot change that now,
but I can continue to
grow from it all. I've
been very discouraged
after having my own
diagnosis, my husband's
diagnosis of Diabetes,
then loosing both my
parents, and the years
of dealing with family
depression and almost
loosing my marriage.
That's a lot to bear. I
know God has been with
me. The daily physical
and mental pain caused
me to become discouraged
and loose my way for a
little while. Searching
the scriptures to create
this webpage inspired me
and comforted me once
again. I pray it does
for any reading this
today and any who is
need of encouragement in
times of pain or "When
Life Hurts". May God
Bless You.
It's sometimes very
difficult
for us to understand
the wisdom and the love
behind
the things that God has
planned.
But we wouldn't have the
rainbow
If we didn't have the
rain;
We wouldn't know the
pleasure
If we never tasted pain.
We wouldn't love the
sunrise
If we hadn't felt the
night;
And we wouldn't know our
weakness
If we hadn't sensed
God's might.
We couldn't have the
springtime
or the yellow daffodil
if we hadn't experienced
the winter's frosty
chill.
And though the brilliant
sunshine
is something God has
made.
He knew too much could
parch our souls
so He created shade.
So God's given us a
balance:
Enough joys to keep us
glad,
Enough tears to keep us
humble,
Enough good to balance
bad.
And if you'll trust in
Him you'll see
Though yesterday brought
sorrow,
The clouds will part and
dawn will bring
A happier tomorrow.
 
 
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