Chapter Three: Pain

The Crossroads of the Heart

There were some technical difficulties over at The Bloom Book Club tonight, so the video won't be posted until tomorrow, but I thought I'd go ahead and post my thoughts.  Be sure to jump over there tomorrow to hear what Jessica and Angie have to say! 



This chapter is not really a fun one.  Not that any of them are FUN....but the last two talked about awakening! and desire!  That's exciting, don't ya think?  Well, this one.....talks about the reality of pain, and how that sometimes, no matter how hard we pray or how many positive things we speak, things don't always work out the way we planned. 

"The whole notion that some part of the pain of life is unavoidable is not an easy idea to confront.  Especially for Christians.  We tend to see our lives as a series of hurdles, which, if we trust God and jump high enough (oh my.....been there....), we can get through without scraping our knees.  If we miss a hurdle, though - or come through bloody and bruised - we must have done it wrong.  We have failed in some way.  Or worse, God has failed us."

Ever felt like that before?

I have.

But it's not true.

God never fails.  And He is not surprised by anything that happens in our life.  He already knew before it happened.

"It may take us a while to catch our breath, to ride the wave, and to trust that God has something in mind - something good - that we would never have dreamed."

Indeed, the Lord will comfort Zion,

He will comfort all her waste places.

And her wilderness He will make like Eden.

And her desert like the garden of the Lord.

Isaiah 51:3

We are not promised that things will always be perfect or that we'll never encounter a storm, but we are promised that we'll never have to go through it alone.

".....you start to realize that some sorrows in life will never go away.  You learn to carry them with you in ways that enrich rather than debilitate your life, in ways that make you wise.  But the dark and knubby places in the fabric, the tapestry of your life, remain."

"There are inevitable losses in life.  But there is one thing you do not have to lose - your heart."

We all experience pain.  It's where we go from there that matters.

"Pain...takes place on an invisible level, yet it has the potential to actually shape the real stuff of a person's future.  It can numb and destroy your passion in life, but it can refine and bless as well."

What will you do with your heart?

Will you allow (or have you allowed) the pain to destroy your passion for life?  Or will you choose to be refined?

God wants to make your wilderness like Eden and your desert like the garden of the Lord.

Trust that He has something in mind - something good - something you would have never dreamed.

XO

Shelly