Three Tips to No Longer See God Through the Lens of Your Pain
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“God didn’t hurt you. People hurt you.”
It’s a common quote that we have all heard in church at one point or another.
Yet, somehow, even when we believe those words to be true, we still find ourselves with the lingering desire to blame someone for our pain.
More often than not, that ‘someone’ ends up being God.
I once heard that the goal of your pain is to find a culprit because your emotions will tell you that someone must be held responsible for how you’re feeling.
The problem with that mindset is that blame is a distraction that offers no real solution.
There is no freedom in blame.
There’s no hope in blame.
And…there’s certainly no help in blame.
The longer you focus on who to blame for what you are going through, the more you distract yourself from healing, developing, and profiting from your pain.
Because God is the ultimate healer, blaming Him for what you’re going through will only distract you from receiving the healing He longs to give you.
When I first began to experience infidelity and dishonesty from my ex-spouse, I had all types of questions for God. We were both churchgoers. He was my Associate Pastor and my best friend. For a long time, I wondered the hows, whys, and everything else in between.
Then, one day, I realized that my questions weren’t serving me. I also came to the understanding that the answers to those questions wouldn’t really help me heal.
So, after much therapy, I began to shift my prayer focus from asking God questions to praising Him for what I could be grateful for.
I understood that my questions and emotions were valid. But, I also understood that I had a goal to not let my trauma become my downfall. In order to achieve that goal, I had to want healing more than I wanted answers.
Surrendering your questions for God’s presence is one of the first steps to spiritual breakthrough.
Next, examine if you’ve let your trauma cause you to wallow in self-pity. Yes, your feelings are valid. But do you realize you can go through a challenging season without letting your troubles consume your thinking?
If all you think about is your issues, your struggles, and your problems, you’ve probably entered the realm of self-pity. For me, changing my meditation by being diligent about reading and journaling the Word of God helped me to climb out of the ‘woo is me’ mentality.
Ok, let’s review how we can see God outside the lens of our pain:
Focus on asking God for help and not blaming Him for what happened to you. If this is the casee, be honest that you struggle with blaming Him and ask Him to show you how to get your head out of that mindset by spending daily time in His Word.
Surrender your questions for the presence of God.
Choose praise over answers and healing over your questions.
Examine whether you’ve let your issue cause you to wallow in self-pity. Acknowledge your emotions through a therapist but choose not to let your struggle consume all of your focus. Make an effort to shift your meditation from your problem to God’s Word and what He says about your future by downloading my free devotional. Start a new hobby, join a small group, or find a sports team to get your mind off yourself. Lastly, remember that what you are going through is temporary and this isn’t your end.
Scripture: Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things (NKJV).
Exercise: What are three noble, true, pure, etc. things that you can think about (see scripture above)? Write them down on a piece of paper.
Hey sis…
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Have you ever asked God, “Lord, why am I going through this?” Have you ever wondered, “Will I ever heal from this pain?” We all have moments where we go through pain or hard seasons. However, rarely do we get to experience the purpose behind the trial and the blessing behind the mess. Join the 7 day Bible Study challenge with my FREE devotional, “Finding the Purpose in My Pain.”
It will teach you how to find purpose in the deepest areas of trauma and hurt in your life so you can learn how to find the hidden good behind your greatest struggles.
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Love,
