HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 246
page A244
Pain continued
• 1 T H E S S A L O NI A NS 3 :7-8 | So we have been greatly encouraged in the midst of our troubles
and suffering, dear brothers and sisters, because you have remained strong in your faith. It
gives us new life to know that you are standing firm in the Lord.
Be encouraged by watching others work through pain while remaining strong in their faith.
• 2 C O R I NT H I A NS 2 :5 | I am not overstating it when I say that the man who caused all the
trouble hurt all of you more than he hurt me.
• PH I L I P P I A NS 2 :4 | “Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in
others, too.”
Realize others may be hurting too. Be sensitive to them and their pain, taking the focus
off yourself.
How is pain good for me? What can I learn from it?
• J O E L 2 :1 3 | “Don’t tear your clothing in your grief, but tear your hearts instead.” Return to
the Lord your God, for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with
unfailing love.
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• 2 C O R I NT H I A NS 7 :8 -1 0 | I am not sorry that I sent that severe letter to you, though I was
sorry at first, for I know it was painful to you for a little while. Now I am glad I sent it, not
because it hurt you, but because the pain caused you to repent and change your ways. It
was the kind of sorrow God wants his people to have, so you were not harmed by us in any
way. For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results
in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow.
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Pain can be redemptive. Your broken heart can lead you to God through the recognition,
confession, and repentance of sin.
• 2 C O R I NT H I A NS 1 2 :8 -1 0 | Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each
time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am
glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. . . .
For when I am weak, then I am strong.
• J O H N 1 1 :1 4 -1 5 | So he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. And for your sakes, I’m glad I
wasn’t there, for now you will really believe. Come, let’s go see him.”
Pain can reveal God’s power. Pain is sometimes a symptom of a weakness in your life,
which might be no fault of your own. But God’s power works best through our weaknesses. Let God work through your weakness so that your pain can showcase his power.
• H E B R E W S 4 :1 5 -1 6 | This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced
all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our
gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we
need it most.
Pain can bring you closer to God when you turn to him with your hurt.
• J A ME S 1 :2 -4 | Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way,
consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your
endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed,
you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
Pain can strengthen your character by testing your faith in God and your ability to endure
faithfully through troublesome situations.
• H E B R E W S 1 2 :1 1 | No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward
there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.
Painful discipline can help us make right choices in the future.
• J O B 6 :1 0 | “At least I can take comfort in this: Despite the pain, I have not denied the
words of the Holy One.”
Pain can test and prove your commitment to God.
• 2 C O R I NT H I A NS 4 :1 7 | For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet
they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!