PAIN

You are hurting right now—hurting so badly you don’t know if you will ever stop hurting. I know, I have felt that pain. Let me assure you, though, that the pain will stop. When Jesus heals, He does a thorough job.

One day when I was calling to God from the midst of my pain, Jesus took me through scripture to the Garden of Gethsemane with Him (Mark 14:32-42). For the first time I saw the pain that He had suffered there. At a time when He so desperately needed the love and comfort of another human being, His apostles could not even stay awake. They did not understand His pain, nor did they care. They had had a big meal and it was late and they wanted to sleep.

Does it seem to you that no one knows how you feel right now? Does it seem that no one knows what you are going through? Jesus does. He has felt your loneliness, your rejection, your pain. He has carried it within Himself that you might not have to. He was in such agony that His sweat fell as drops of blood to the ground. He went without comfort that you might be comforted. Let Him comfort you now. Psalm 144, verse 2 says that the Lord is "my steadfast love and my fortress, my high tower and my deliverer, my shield and He in whom I trust and take refuge" (Amplified). Right now turn to Him. Let Him be your refuge, your fortress, your shield. He loves you so very much. Only He can truly understand the pain you are feeling. Let Him comfort you.

Jesus showed me something else that happened to Him in that Garden. He was betrayed by someone He loved very much and He was betrayed in the name of love, with a kiss (Matthew 26:47-50). The one you love very much has betrayed you also. Jesus knows how you feel. He has experienced the humiliation and the shame. He has already borne all of this Himself so that you don’t have to. When He went to the cross He not only took all your sin there with Him but He also took all your pain, humiliation and shame, and betrayal. Hebrews 12:2,3 says, "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."

When the Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write those words, He had you in mind. He knew the pain you would feel today. He knew the shame of rejection you would feel. He wants you to look to Jesus. That’s why those words have been written, that you might know what to do when this hour came in your life.

Before you can even attempt to stand for the healing of your marriage, you need to allow Jesus to comfort and begin healing you. Begin to read the psalms. David knew pain and rejection. He also knew from Whom his help came. Read how he cried out to the Lord and then how he praised His name even in the midst of his troubles.

Praise is a very effective means of healing. You cannot praise the Lord with your whole heart and stay wounded. At first it will truly be a sacrifice of praise (Hebrews 13:15), you will not feel like doing it. Once you discipline yourself to begin, though, you will find that you draw into the very presence of the Lord and your healing will begin.

Staying in Jesus’ presence is the key to healing. Praise Him for Who He is and what He has done. Get your eyes off your problems and circumstances and onto Jesus. Get to know Him like you never have before. Begin to see this as a special time in your life in which you can draw closer and closer to Him.

One of the things that happened during my stand for my husband and our marriage was that I got to know Jesus in a way that I might never had if I had not been forced by circumstances to rely on Him totally. I came to know His immense love for me, His steadfastness, His never-changing heart. He became my Rock in the midst of the storm. No one can ever take from me the love relationship that we developed during those times of turmoil. I know Jesus today in such a deeper way in a time of peace because I got to know Him well in a time of trouble.

Draw close to Jesus. Press in to know Him as you never have before. See this time as an opportunity, not a problem. Allow Jesus to comfort and heal you. He has already borne your pain within Him when He went to the cross for you. You need not carry it now. Give it to Him and allow Him to resurrect you with His healing power. "For I will restore health to you, and I will heal your wounds, says the Lord; because they have called you an outcast, saying, This is Zion, whom no one seeks after and for whom no one cares!" (Jeremiah 30:17 Amplified).

Praise the Lord for Who He is and what He has done. Sacrifice praise to Him from the midst of your pain and healing will begin within you. Spend time reading the Bible and ask Jesus to speak to you through His Word. The psalms are a good place to start. See how David rejoiced in the Lord and found comfort in Him even in the midst of heavy trials.

"Jesus, You know I am hurting. You once felt this pain within Yourself. You know the pain of rejection, the shame and humiliation. You took them to the cross for me and now I give them to You. I praise You, Lord! I praise Your Name! I will spend time with You in Your Word. Comfort and heal me, Jesus. Amen."

Table of Contents   Previous   Next   Top of Page