Today’s message is a familiar one that we’ve heard throughout various ministry settings. As believers, we’ve often been encouraged to press on in spite of the circumstances. This word has certainly proven itself to be true in my life personally, and I believe that it will bless you also! Be encouraged that there is PURPOSE in your PAIN! That’s the simple, but so very powerful message that I’d like to share with you today!
If only you’d allow the Spirit of the Lord to use the things that you are suffering and enduring to render Him the glory! He needs your story! After all, how can a testimony even be without a test? In order for someone to rise from the ashes, things must first take place. In this season, God desires for His people to be encouraged not to give up, faint, quit, or throw in the towel despite the pain!
Pain – Mental or emotional distress or suffering. Grief; agony; misery. The state of being in great trouble.
Who better than Jesus to know the true meaning of enduring great pain and agony for the glory of the Lord? As he was stripped down to nothing and found himself in the garden of Gethsemane, he prayed in agony for the Lord to remove his burdens from him. Jesus found himself distressed beyond measure, confessing that the sorrow in his heart was so great that it almost crushed him. The scriptures tell us that though he was lowly in spirit, he yet proclaimed to the Lord, “nevertheless not my will, but thine be done.” It was a raw moment with God that served as one of the most powerful examples of the suffering that one could ever experience for the greatest amount of purpose to be released in the Earth realm!
Will you allow the Lord’s will to be done in your life, even in spite of the pain??
Though many may not know the struggles you have, the things that bring pain to your heart and boggle your mind, what I do know is that there is purpose in the pain and God will use it for His glory! We are all familiar with the story of Joseph: the one who was favored by his father and had to deal with jealousy from his brothers because of his gift. At his age, even he did not know nor could he understand the hand of God upon his life. He endured being sold into slavery, being lied on by Potiphar’s wife, and thrown into a dungeon to die! But even after this terrible pain, he was remembered by God and went on to become the second most powerful man in Egypt after Pharaoh! Joseph rose to be the one who would bring great restoration to his family when the famine happened. This story is a great example of the saying “when it is your time, it is your time”! The pain that Joseph endured turned out for his good in the end. I’d even encourage you to take some time to read and find yourself in the story of Joseph. Surely God is able to turn your pain into good!
“But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.” – Genesis 50:20
I’ve Been There, Too!
So many times we allow the pain within this life to drive us further from God. Let today’s message be the encouragement that you need to instead become closer to the Father. As I’ve personally shared many times, it was the death of my grandmother that ultimately brought me closer to Christ. Losing her as a young woman, mother, and wife devastated me to the core and left me struggling in grief alone. With a heavy, burdened heart I was yet drawn closer to the Father. Though I was confused, broken-hearted, and completely shattered by the loss, I pressed in to Jesus! I knew that if I could just cry out and pray to him then somehow things would get better. And surely they did! He began to shift me and grow me up in some areas within my life. It was one of the best experiences that encouraged me to embrace my pain and allow it to catapult me to levels unimaginable!
Many know the testimony that I’ve shared on many stages throughout the years: from food stamps to millions. My husband and I had to endure the great pain and financial struggle that resulted from a failed business –leaving us with 9 mouths to feed in one household! The bills kept piling, things kept getting turned off, food became low in the fridge –but God!
Though we didn’t have much, the Lord would send His people to encourage and uplift us as we went through the hardship, declaring restoration over my family. Truthfully, some days challenged us to see past the circumstances even when things didn’t look like they were adding up. I remember taking a trip with my husband to the grocery store even when we only had five dollars! As Greg went down one aisle to get bread, I walked down another to get eggs. Suddenly the anointing fell on me right in the middle of the aisle! I instantly paused to acknowledge the presence of the Lord, asking Him of what He was saying to me. This is the life-changing message that He dropped in my spirit:
He said, “I am your source. If only you would allow me to birth some things through this moment in time. If only you would allow me to use you as a testimony. Do you think that all of this is about you? Do not become bitter and angry with me. But allow me to get the glory out of this. It’s not about you, but it’s about the people that I am calling you to bless. It’s about the people that I am calling you to provide hope for to let them know that if I did it for you then I could do it for someone else! I need a story! I need someone who is willing. I need a vessel through whom I can release my glory. I need someone to see that God is surely with you!”
The way that this season in my life was set up, it had to be the Lord who brought us out! The pain had a purpose! It was a paradigm shift in our lives that required us to be totally dependent on God. Even once we reached millionaire status, I’ve had to learn that no matter what we have there is still a total dependence on God.
There are some things that pain will allow you to experience.
Pain allows you to discover the strength that rests in you…
You will discover the gifts within you…
The pain also expands your endurance…
Pain matures you…
Pain sets you up for GREAT REWARD!!
“Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” – 1 Corinthians 2:8
There are times when people will mess with you and have no clue who you truly are! They won’t see you at the glorified state or understand the purpose that the Lord has called you to walk out. People may walk over you and even talk about you. They will put you in the back of the room, even when you deserve to be at the front. Even in situations like these, there have been times when the anointing over my life spoke for itself!
In this season, you won’t have to announce or let others know that God’s hand is upon your life, it will speak for itself!
Many believers often miss the mark when we try to run away from our pain, as opposed to allowing God to get the glory. It’s time to shift your mindset in this hour to allow God to use your life for His glory. No matter what you see around you, be encouraged enough to speak it out! It’s time to shift your focus from thinking about what has happened to you and instead think about what could happen through you!
It’s Time to Rejoice!
“Weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.” – Psalm 30:5
“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance…”
Ecclesiastes 3:1-4
Your pain has purpose and it is going to work out for the good! If you feel as though this is the end of your story, be encouraged that the pages are yet turning! There’s another chapter that is being written in your book! But the process was absolutely necessary. As a mother who has birthed 6 beautiful daughters naturally, I certainly had to go through some suffering before I could experience birth and the latter joy! In this life, you will have moments of mourning and times of great pain. But there will surely also be times of dancing and rejoicing. Be encouraged that in spite of the pain, your time to rejoice is near!
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” – Galatians 6:9
Here’s what I know: whatever you’re dealing with or going through, there’s purpose for that thing! Don’t get fatigued from doing good! You will harvest a good crop only if you refuse to give up or quit! As we think of the different fruits of the spirit, one that can be applied to today’s message is long-suffering. Though you will suffer some disheartening things in this life, do not allow those things to get the best of you or make you bitter!
Will you give God the permission to get the glory as you endure this painful process??
Keep on going! There were many days when I didn’t understand the “how”. The circumstances didn’t even seem as if God could move on my behalf or touch someone else’s heart to move. But He is God! We serve a God that likes to show off no matter how hopeless things look! He is a God that wants to turn the impossible around, show Himself strong, and show His hand!
Prophetic Declaration
Today I speak life into your spirit and your inner man that the very things that you are dealing with and encountering are working out for your good. May you trust God to be God, allow the Lord to get the glory out of you, and be a walking testimony! The weight of suffering that is on you represents the weight of glory that will come through! It is my prayer that your ability to trust the Father will soar to new levels in spite of what you’re seeing with your eyes. The higher the levels of trust, the greater the reward for His people! May your heart be softened to trust that the Lord knows you and how to get you where you need to go.
He knows how much pain that you can take. He knows what you can endure. Do not grow weary in doing well. There’s so much to birth through YOU! Get back into position and yield to Him and allow Him to use you mightily!
How can books be written without stories? How can you help others heal without you first having to experience brokenness yourself? May you see pain in a different light today. When the storms and attacks come, know that God will get the glory! Pick yourself back up and receive the strength to keep on moving and walking out the beautiful plans that God has for your life!
Amen.
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Blessings,
Lenika Scott
The Millionaire Mom
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