By Kenneth Jackson

By Kenneth Jackson

Thursday, July 21, 2011

"Are You In Pain?"

As we enter into a relationship with the Father and begin walking and talking with Him, He takes us on many journeys---journeys to reveal Himself to us and teach us about His ways.  I recently have been on a journey to see others through the eyes of God---in two different ways.  One is about being in pain---this is more than physical pain--there is mental anguish, emotional pain, spiritual pain, grief and sorrow are types of pain--pain can be in any area.  One night as I was lying in bed with sciatic pain down my leg, I began to think of people in different types of pain.  I began to see something.  All those people in pain "just want to be free of the pain."  When people are in pain, they turn to many different things to get relief or to be comforted.  Some are addicted to pain medication, others are drug addicts, alcoholics, some addicted to food.  My "drug" of choice has always been sugar---using it to comfort me and even numb the pain I was in at the time.  Some are in such pain that they commit suicide--at that moment, not living looks like a better option than living.  I have been at that same place many times.  ALL of us just want to be free of some type of pain.  We as humans usually judge and condemn all these people---I have over and over---but when we judge others for what they do and say, we are actually judging the motives of their heart and ONLY God can do that.  We cannot see into a person's heart to know their motives.  The Father is the only just judge because He sees into the heart.  I began to see that when Jesus was walking this earth, when He came across people in pain, He was "moved with compassion" for them. As His followers, when we come across those in pain, aren't we also to be "moved with compassion."  On this journey to see others through His eyes, I was driving on a two lane highway behind a car who was driving about 50 miles per hour and driving with half the car on the shoulder and half in my lane---preventing me from passing the car.  I had a line of cars behind me, but there was a yellow stripe in the highway.  When I was able to pass the car and saw that it was an elderly woman who seemed to have a death grip on the steering wheel, I began to be moved with compassion for this woman and out of my mouth came the words "Bless her heart, she is doing the best she can." Judging the actions of others like this woman causes us to have "road rage" and then we begin to curse people instead of blessing them.  How do we look at others in some type of pain or people who irritate us by what they say and do-- and see them through the eyes of God?  Only if He does it for us, will we ever be moved with compassion and bless others instead of cursing them.  This is GRACE--God doing for us what we cannot do for ourselves.  As His grace flows into our hearts, then His grace will begin to flow out of us to all those who cross our path every day.
"Oh, Father God, cause us to see others through your eyes---eyes of grace and compassion--eyes that see people the way You do so we will bless instead of curse those whom you created and love."  Amen and Amen
Blessings!!!
Carolyn

1 comment:

  1. This is a wonderful view about pain. If I can only stop and think about it instead of blaming. Thank you Carolyn

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