"Motivated By Pain"

"Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you."  1 Peter 5:7

We all go through times of pain, be it physical, emotional or mental.  Pain can come through the loss of a loved one, through a broken relationship, through the infidelity of a spouse, through the betrayal of a friend, through the rebellion of a child, etc.  Regardless of how pain comes, we have to make a decision about what we are going to do with it.  Why?  Because pain is a motivator. 

Pain will either motivate us in a good way or a bad way.  Let me explain what I mean.  Look at physical pain.  The good side is that it will motivate you to go to the doctor and see what is going on in your body so you can discover if you have a serious illness before it's too late.  The negative side is that it will often motivate you to do nothing because you are hurting.  Thereby, robbing you of doing any activity and not going forward with life. 

When we are suffering emotional pain, it will motivate us in a good way or a bad way.  Therefore, we have to make a decision about what we will do with the pain.  Will we continue to hold on to it?  Or will we let it go?  If we hold on to it, it will motivate us to be prideful-- I have a right to flaunt my pain and hold on to it.  It will motivate us to revenge-- you hurt me, I will get even.  It will motivate us to bitterness-- at which time we become defiled by it and everyone else around us too.  It will also motivate us to anger, distrust, fear, intimidation, hate, hardness of heart, cruelty, depression and so on.

The good motivation of pain is that it will bring you closer to the Lord.  It will cause you to seek Him out to heal and comfort you.  It will show you how weak and helpless you are and how you can't heal yourself from the pain.  If you make the choice to let it go and give your pain to the Lord, you will discover that His grace is sufficient and His strength will be there for you.  But you have to choose to give your pain to the Lord.  Just like you have to make the choice to forgive a person who hurts you, you have to make the choice to let go of the pain.  The choice is up to you.  You can either let it motivate you into a deeper, darker, worse place of pain.  Or you can let it motivate you to get healing and deliverance.  Which will you choose?

Have a great day.  Pain will motivate you in one of two ways.