Romans 8:28 NLT - _"And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose."
HOW TO TURN YOUR PAIN INTO PURPOSE (c)
Sometime ago, I watched the testimony of a woman who got married at 50 years of age for the first time. Her ordeal in finding a mate due to her own character flaw was a sermon on its own. Singles who felt God had forgotten them could find hope and healing through her personal testimony.
She is using her testimony of pain&purpose to heal others. One of our friends in ministry invited her to be part of their conference meeting. Singles rushed in their numbers to listen to this woman's testimony and teaching. I am sure they learnt a thing or two. That is how to turn your pain into purpose - when you use it to heal others.
> "Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God." - 2 Corinthians 1:4
*The most powerful ministry does not come from your certificate, it comes from your scar*.
Certificate can give you information, but scar gives you authority. People may respect your grammar, but they connect with your story. The reason God did not kill you in that pain is because He wants to use that pain as a tool to heal someone else.
A woman who has never waited on God for the fruit of the womb cannot fully understand the pain of those in that condition. She will only sound theoretical. But a woman who was once in that condition for years, when she says, "God will give you babies," her words carry weight. Her scar is speaking.
A woman who has never lost a child cannot effectively comfort a mother who just lost one. She will say, "Take heart," but it will sound empty. But a woman who has buried her own child and survived it, when she hugs that grieving mother, she does not need many words. Her presence alone says, "You can survive this."
That is what Paul meant. God comforts us, not so that we keep the comfort to ourselves, but so that we can become distributors of that same comfort.
Your pain qualifies you. That is why God allowed you to pass through it. He was enrolling you in a school that no university can teach. There are things you cannot learn in a seminary. The curriculum of our universities does not include "Lifematics 101". We learn to do life as we live. That is why some who use textbook or classroom knowledge only go through life and fail.
Maybe you went through a broken engagement. God wants to use you to counsel young ladies who are depressed because of heartbreak.Maybe you battled sickness and God healed you. Your ward in the hospital is now your mission field.
Maybe your business failed and God restored you. You are now qualified to mentor young entrepreneurs who want to give up.
Don't waste your pain. Don't hide your scar. That thing you survived is now your message. Your pain was never meant to be personal only. It was meant to be a platform to heal others.
Heavenly father, I lay my pain at Your feet. I may not understand it, but I surrender it. Turn my tears into seeds. Turn my scar into a star. Anoint my pain and use what hurt me to help others. Make my life a source of healing for my generation. In Jesus' name, Amen.