Pain's Purpose

What is crucial in life is not HOW we get out of pain, but rather, WHAT we get out of it. - A. Christing

After being beaten, flogged, and cast into prison, in the midst of their pain Paul and Silas began to praise God. Wow, what a relief!

Pain, be it physical, emotional, spiritual, financial, etc., no one likes it and the sooner we can get out/rid of it, the better. Truthfully though it serves a purpose, to let us know something is amiss, or out of order in our life. And to try and hurry to the cure or relief point without understanding the cause is like cutting down weeds without pulling up the root - they will grow back. The key is to know why it occurs, then put into practice habits and actions that will keep it from re-occurring. God knows pain and its effects on us, but often He has to leave the burden much longer than necessary because of our slowness to understand why and apply His remedies.

Until Monday...

Pastor Botts

"...Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me..." - II Corinthians 12:9

A little comfort for the rough journey

God doesn’t always smooth the path, but sometimes He puts springs in the wagon. – M. Lucas

Joseph’s pathway to prominence as Pharaoh’s 2nd in command wasn’t the smoothest, but God’s hand of favor was always upon him. Amen!

Hardship is as much a part of life as the air we breathe. For if we had no hardship we really would not know the true experience of joy. Troubles may come and not seem to get better with much prayer and meditation, but God will not put more on us than we can bear, and where one area of our life may be particularly troubled, God is still blessing in other areas. That’s one of the great mysteries of ‘grace.’ If we count our blessings we’ll see it’s true.

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“There was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘MY GRACE is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”’ – II Corinthians 12:7-9

Transformed Tragedies

A pearl is a beautiful thing produced by an injured, interrupted life. – S. Hoeller

Nathanael thought nothing good could ever come out of Nazareth. Boy was he ever wrong. Hmm!

Truth be known most of us want a simple care-free, stress-free, painless life. We want everything to go our way, on our schedule, and yield to our will. And we seek out ways and people to make this happen. Thankfully, God loves us too much to allow life to happen according to our whims and desires. He is working in us and through us to produce something far more beautiful than we could ever imagine on our own. The key for us is to not grow frustrated with His ‘interruptions’ or feel inferior because of the heartaches and setbacks. Just as the oyster coats the ‘injury’ with its tears to produce its gem, we too can always recover and produce a meaningful, inspiring offering to God. Why not start this weekend.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” – II Corinthians 12:10