Pain that is not transformed it transmitted

There is a recovery saying that hurt people, hurt people. In other words when we are hurt, if we don't deal with the hurt, we finish up hurting others. We may not mean to, but we do. I liken this to having a sore thumb. If you have a sore thumb and somebody accidentally brushes up against it, you are likely to react more strongly than if you did not have a sore thumb. There is a worldly saying “Don't get mad, get even!” Well that's how wars get started. The writer to the Hebrews describes this as a root of bitterness that springs up, chokes us, and defiles many (Hebrews 12:15). Bitterness is a poison which we drink, and it poisons not only ourselves, but those we love. And many times the other person remains unaffected. Our drinking poison can leave them totally unaffected!

But what are we supposed to do? How are we supposed to handle our hurt? The first part of the above verse in Hebrews give us the way. It tells us to be careful lest we fail to obtain the Grace of God and a root springing up etc. In other words many times we need God's enabling grace to respond the way He would have us respond. We need His help. It starts with His teaching. The key verse that caught my attention this morning is Mark 11:26 “If you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.” The point is that our offences against God are far greater that the offences we receive, and if we want to be forgiven then we need to forgive (Matthew 18:21-35). That truth can be hard to take, and it requires humility, the very condition needed to receive Grace, the wherewithal to do what without it we cannot do (James 4:6).

But pain and hurt don't only come through other people doing us wrong, and this pain can hurt others too. Someone who has lost a spouse, can withdraw from the children at the very time they are needed the most. At these and all other times, pain is a crossroads, we can blame God and withdraw, or we can come to Him, the “God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our distress, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble” (2 Corinthians 1:3, 4). So we basically have a choice, we can come to Him to receive Grace and comfort, and allow Him to equip us to lead others to Him, or one way or another, we can continue to add to the pain in the World!

Father, the words of Psalm 30 come to mind this morning “Sorrow may endure for the night, but joy comes in the morning.” At that point we will declare “You have turned my mourning into dancing for me” (verses 5, 11). And I want to thank You this morning Lord that there is coming day when there will be no more tears, no more sorrow, no more death (Revelation 21:4). In the meantime Lord strengthen us by Your Mercy, Grace and comfort, to live lives that adorn the gospel in Jesus Name Amen