Pain Hurts

I was just thinking about - - -

THANKSGIVING DAY - - - And how different ones will observe it. I spoke to a Clerk at a local store and she will have to work most of the day. Others will be hunting... Others will still be traveling...

But I think of those for whom this is just another day of PAIN...

• The PAIN of Loneliness
• The PAIN of Sorrow
• The PAIN of a Persistent Malady
• The PAIN of Disability
• The PAIN of Depression and Despair
• The PAIN of Rejection, etc.

I wonder about two passages in Scripture...
Psalm 103 states: "He heals all our diseases..."
II Corinthians 12:7 - "...to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me..."

I wonder what Paul's thorn in the flesh was...

• Could it have been Loneliness
• Could it have the Lack of a Life Companion
• Could it have been Physical Discomforts from all the Beatings He received
• Could it have been Reciprocal Injury from the Shipwrecks he endured...

There have been several speculations regarding Paul's "thorn in the flesh"... Some allow he may have been suffering from Malaria; others from Poor Eyesight; and some Aches and Pains due to broken bones suffered while being beaten and their improper mending...

Whatever it was - it was persistent and had been an object of his prayers... And for the reason Paul stated - "to keep me from exalting myself..." - the Lord saw fit to leave his prayer for healing unanswered. The Lord did indicate to him, "My GRACE is sufficient for you, for My Strength is perfected in your weakness." Rather than being bitter, Paul accepted the Lord's purpose for him: "Most gladly, I will rather boast in my weaknesses (infirmities), so that the Power of Christ may dwell in me..." It's not easy! I have seen people gnarled and limited due to arthritis (and other painful maladies). Their activities have been greatly limited by their situation and circumstance. Sometimes, surgery is not THE remedy and one must continue with the ebb and flow of their lives - with the pain and discomfort and limitation.

I hope the words of Paul are my persuasion and motivation: "I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong..." This is not the easiest road to travel but it is the safest. To know that the power of Christ is what is keeping me functional is a tremendous confidence. It literally gets me to the place where I should be all of the time - "Not I - but - Christ"!!

I love the words of Deuteronomy 33:25 - "...As thy days, so shall thy strength be..." With Christ as the source of strength and power, I may not get to my destination as quickly as I would dictate and desire - but - I get there in His good time - and that is usually at just the right time. Oh, for the contentment to be where He wants me to be and doing what He wants me to do!

My Pain Hurts! Christ's Strength and Power Helps!