When God is not doing what you expect and you are in pain, remember that God can bring you peace in the middle of your pain. As the Apostle Paul sat in a prison cell, he wrote a letter to a group of Christians and penned these words:
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)
When you cannot make it on your own, when life is too much, when you don’t have the answers, remember that God can bring you peace in your pain.
I don’t know how John the Baptist responded to Jesus’ message back to him. Jesus’ message reassured John that yes, God was moving, just not in the way John expected. Please don’t get tripped up by the way God works. And while I don’t know John’s exact reaction, I believe John was encouraged by Jesus’ message.
If I was writing the story of John the Baptist, I would have him going out in a blaze of glory. After all, he was a cousin of Jesus. He baptized Jesus and prepared the way for the Lord. If I’m the author, it’s going to be a spectacular finale for John.
The reality is very different from how I would write it.
The true story is John never got out of prison. And as an act of revenge for preaching against her sins, Herod’s wife asked for John’s head to be cut off and delivered to her on a platter. That’s how John died. Beheaded in prison.
Life doesn’t always go the way we expect it.
God doesn’t move in the way we expect Him to.
But you are blessed when you don’t get tripped up by Jesus.
“Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” (Matthew 14:6)
I never expected to be speaking in a chapel service at White’s Residential and Family Services in January. Less than a year ago, I did not know anything about this place. But when my family needed to move to Wabash because of a painful time we were experiencing, God opened a door for us.
I applied for a seasonal job of mowing the grass at White’s. Since I had previous experience of mowing at a golf course, I thought I could mow for White’s while I looked around for a full-time job. But when I came into the interview, they told me a new position had opened up since I had sent in my application, and they believed it would be a good fit for me. And so here I am today working as a mentor in the greenhouse at 50 East, because God can turn your pain into a purpose. And when I feel overwhelmed and confused, when I struggle with the pain I’ve caused to others, I am reminded God can bring you peace in your pain.
And God knew that today, I needed to be write this post so that you could read it and know three things.
1. God loves you.
2. He hasn’t forgotten about you.
3. You are blessed when you don’t get tripped up by Jesus.
Live by faith… because God can turn your pain into a purpose, and He can bring you peace in the middle of your pain.
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