PASTOR’S CORNER: Part I: Don’t waste your pain

Now, community, this morning, being wasteful in anything is not good. Everything has value. That means we are not to let anything we do or go through be for nothing. The word “waste” means “to discard as worthless, defective, or of no use.” This is not to be the case when it comes to our pain. No pain is to be viewed as worthless or of no use. Pain is of the highest value. All pain has a purpose, especially in the lives of God’s people. Every single thing in the lives of Christian believers has a purpose, and it is not to be wasted. To waste something says we don’t value it, that it doesn’t mean anything to us. If we waste it, we don’t appreciate it. And what we don’t value, we throw away.

All of us this morning have a ministry. Believe it or not, pain is a ministry. That’s what I want to talk about today. Pain is something we all know—physical pain, emotional pain, and mental pain that stems from something we are experiencing, or have already experienced. It is pain of the worst kind, the kind that nobody but us can understand—secret storm pain. Community, if we don’t work our pain, if we don’t use our pain, then all we have been through has been in vain! We Christians have to develop a sharing ministry, starting with our local church and then spreading beyond. What we went through was not meant to be kept to ourselves; it is meant to be shared.

Readers, there are people who have almost died from trauma. Some have died on the operating table, but God brought them back. Others survived surgeries doctors said they would not recover from. Some survived the loss of a loved one they thought they would never get over. Some have survived cancer. PTSD, near-death experiences, painful divorces. Some have slept under a bridge, lost their dignity, family, and self-respect to alcohol or drugs, and God gave them their life back. The pain of hurt and betrayal—and they survived. Why do we think we survived? Why do we think we overcame? Why are we still standing? Why do we think God gave us a testimony? He gave it for us to testify, to share, to encourage somebody who is coming behind us and dealing with the same thing we dealt with. If we don’t use our pain, we will lose our pain.

Sometimes we are too consumed with ourselves to see the needs of others. We think our pain is only for ourselves. Once God brings us through, He expects us to reach out to somebody else who is going through the same thing. Friends, the one thing we do not do enough of is encourage each other.

Nobody who is a member of the local assembly, or the body of Christ, should be going through something painful while their brothers and sisters know about it, yet nobody reaches out to show support. The body of Christ is a family, and family supports one another. Nobody can help someone through something like someone who has gone through the same thing. We just celebrated Breast Cancer Awareness Month. If I’m battling breast cancer and I’m afraid, nobody can encourage me like a woman who has battled breast cancer. What an encouragement it would be to hear from her and for her to tell me what God has done for her, to say, “You can make it!”—to share the struggles and fears she had. Don’t waste your pain.

Those in AA or drug recovery groups will tell us that having someone share their testimony of struggle is what gives them strength. They don’t waste their pain—they make it a ministry. Domestic violence victims who survived and got out can share the pain of physical and mental abuse from a spouse, and let others know they don’t have to put up with abuse. God did not make them to be a punching bag for anyone. They can take control of their lives.

Community, if we have a pain ministry, use it for the glory of God. Somebody who is going through something can benefit from your ministry. Don’t waste your pain. But the one thing that can cause you to waste your pain more than anything else is bitterness—especially against someone who has hurt you. Better watch that. If anything will cause us to waste our pain, it will be someone who has done us the worst harm. There are people who have harbored grudges for years because of pain inflicted on them.

Community, pain hurts. It doesn’t feel good at all. The fact that somebody hurt you—physically abused you, told a lie that ruined you, cheated on you with your spouse, someone who was supposed to be your friend—these things are real. But even in that, when we turn it over to Jesus, He can turn it around and make our pain our ministry. We’ve got to give Him our lives completely. With God, all things are possible. Christian, don’t waste your pain.