When Pain Strikes | SUFFERING AND GOD | Y-Hub NetworX
Channel: Y-Hub NetworX
Date: 2020-10-21

#connectcreatecompel #ewagataunchained #whenpainstrikes #youth #gospel 
Unless we understand what sin is, we will never fully appreciate the need for salvation. Nobody goes to hospital because they are feeling well- yet some are a ticking time-bomb thanks to a painless ailment. We appreciate the place of a doctor pointing out our sickness but like the pharisees, we abhor Christ for pointing us to our sin. Who are we to argue with a doctor's diagnosis? But such is humanity- especially when we are doing well and we have not cares- we never see ourselves as having missed the mark.
Instead of seeking the help of the Lord, we put the Lord on the docks- a classic case of the tail wagging the dog. May God help us understand the purpose of pain. I will point us to 4 Painpoints:
1. Pain as Punishment. We all know this and feel this totally because in human development, pain was always inflicted on the wrong-doer. So it is natural for us to associate pain with punishment.
2. Pain as Pointer. What would happen if we had no sensation of pain? Many of us would not know they are in trouble until its too late. Imagine sitting on a hot plate and not knowing it until your skin is scalded beyond repair. So pain is an act of grace and mercy because it affords us awareness to things that would potentially destroy us. Pain saves us from death. That little headache could lead doctors to discovering a tumor that would otherwise drop you like a hot potato. Isn't the pain therefore an act of grace?
3. Pain as Prompter. Pain has a way of waking up even the most docile of us. The pangs of hunger caused the prodigal son to come to his senses. Emotionally, we call it a gut feeling. 
Pain as Process. Lastly, pain can be seen as a process. It takes pain to forge a man or woman. Pain qualifies us. Mandela was qualified by 27 years in prison. No one want to live in pain but we often celebrate those who have endured it. 
What is your posture towards pain and suffering? Have you put God on the docks? Are you a patient angry at the great physician?