We will all go through pain at some point in our life: physical, emotional, relational, financial, spiritual pain, grief and loss. Frequently things we’ve said or done, or that have been said or done to us in the past cause us pain that prompt us to live in guilt, shame, and regret. Jesus told us to expect painful trials in this life, but it is up to us to choose whether the painful trials will allow us to become bitter or better.

Pain is like a storm: we often have little forewarning, feel trapped under it and miserable at the time, and have no indication how long it will last, how we will get through it, or what good will come from it. Yet, I’ve learned that because we serve a God of redemption, frequently there are gifts that result from a painful past.

We serve a God of redemption. What the enemy intends for evil in our lives, God can and will use for good and for his glory (Genesis 50:20, Romans 8:28). God doesn’t waste anything, and that includes our pain. So, what if instead of being ashamed of our painful past, we considered the gifts it brings?

 

 

Pain teaches us when something is wrong. We prefer a life without pain and suffering. Yet, pain is a gift because it signals something is wrong. Pain is a natural reaction to injury or infection. It reveals when something is amiss in our body, in a relationship, in our finances, in our walk with God, or in other areas of our lives. If we never felt pain, potential danger would catch us unaware.

Pain Reveals Our Dependence on God. Realizing how little control we possess in this life, perhaps especially when it comes to our painful experiences, often produces a defining moment in coming to terms with our dependence on God. I applaud the woman with the issue of blood because she tried everything in her own strength to heal herself, including exhausting her physical and financial resources, and scripture says she only worsened (See Mark 5:26). When she exhausted every other avenue of healing, she engaged her faith and reached out to the great physician, realizing she was dependent on Him for healing. The defining moment in this woman’s life occurred when, lacking in her own strength, she reached out for Jesus’s hem in faith, and his strength went out from him, into her, healing her of the pain that plagued her for over a decade. Perhaps instead of viewing our dependence on God in a negative light, we can see it as the avenue he uses to draw us to himself and to teach us to depend on Him and His strength.

Pain Deepens Our Walk with God. In our humanness, pain often prompts us to question God, to question his purpose and his plans, and even to question his character. If I hurt, is God still good? If God allowed this suffering in my life, can he be trusted? God welcomes our questions and our honest emotions. But God is often more concerned with bringing us into a deeper relationship with him, and a greater appreciation of who he is, than he is with answering our specific questions. If we gain nothing more through our painful trials and suffering than a greater understanding of who God is and appreciate a deeper, more intimate relationship with him through it, we remain blessed indeed. Deepening our relationship with God comes through learning how much he loves us, that he would send Jesus to be the sacrifice for our sins and allow him to bleed and die on our behalf.

Pain Teaches Us Perseverance. When life is easy, perseverance isn’t required. But pain and suffering test our ability to persevere because our first instinct is often to want to give up. Scripture reminds us that those who persevere receive God’s blessing of both compassion and mercy, because perseverance comes at a cost. James 5:11 encourages us: “As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.”

Jesus persevered through pain to encourage us not to grow weary or lose heart, so that in our own pain we would continue to persevere. Pain tempts us to give up, in life and on God. And doing so would steal the hope of those who are watching from the sidelines and borrowing the hope we exercise in Christ. But persevering through our painful trials produces character and hope that can be achieved no other way. “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope” (Romans 5:3-4).

Our Painful Past Confirms that God is Good and Faithful. Authentic faith trusts God’s character and what we know to be true about God when our circumstances try to convince us otherwise. God asks us to trust him—that he is good and that he is faithful to see us through, even before the pages turn on our painful story. “Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).

Our sacred scars reflect God’s faithfulness to bring us through our painful trials, but when we’re still healing and the scars are yet to be formed, we need to remember those times that God was faithful in the past as well as his promise of new mercies when we need them today. God proves his goodness and faithfulness not by paving an easy path through life but by walking with us through the hard path. Our situations may not be good, but God’s character is always good and faithful, and that will never change. Once we’ve healed from the pain and we have the scar to show for our time of woundedness, it is then that we can look in life’s rearview mirror with perspective and see God’s goodness, faithfulness, and redemption of our suffering.

Our Painful Past Gives Us Confidence That We Are Stronger Than Whatever Tried to Hurt Us. What if, instead of viewing our scars as an ugly reminder of the heartache we’ve experienced in this world, we appreciated them as a reflection that because of Jesus we are stronger than whatever tried to hurt us? In the thick of painful circumstances, we often wonder how we will ever make it through to the other side. We often feel too weak or ill-equipped for the battle, but that puts us in the perfect position for God to do what only He can.

Rather than giving up or running away, God wants us to run to him and rely on His strength to see us through. Through our painful trials and in the struggles, God offers us strength, courage, freedom, and the ability to persevere with him as our Defender, our Refuge, our Comforter, and our Strength. How often do we strive in our own strength to make things happen, only to find the results unfulfilling and demanding our continued attention? Conversely, we have the opportunity to learn that surrendering to God’s will and God’s way is far superior. Our scars are a reminder that the God in us is stronger than anything that tries to come against us.

Our Painful Past Proves That We are Overcomers and Victorious in Christ Jesus. Perhaps overcoming isn’t living a pain-free experience but it’s putting one foot in front of the other when everything within you begs you to quit. Jesus did not want to go through a painful, torturous death, and yet he recognized his father’s greater work within that hour of his suffering. Even as Jesus despaired, he yielded to God’s will in the moment and continued to wait on Gold’s deliverance. Jesus allowed himself to be dependent on God, even as God permitted his death and even as he unfairly carried the weight of the world’s sin on the cross. Jesus bent low, wept, and bled on our behalf. What Jesus accomplished on the cross we could never do for ourselves. Through his death and resurrection, he showed us in patience and faith what overcoming looks like, both the depths from which it rises and the quiet triumph it brings forth on our behalf. Sometimes overcoming doesn’t look like conquering. Sometimes overcoming looks like keeping our focus on God instead of on our painful situation. As long as we cling to Jesus through our painful trials, we are overcomers and victorious in him.

Pain Teaches Us That We Can Comfort Others. We are reminded in 2 Corinthians 1:4, “He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others.” Sometimes our experience with pain has little to do with us and more about what God wants to do for others! I treated thousands of patients with depression and anxiety in the early part of my career as a clinical neuropsychologist, but once I went through the valley of depression myself, I could enter in to their suffering from a place of true compassion and empathy that only came from the shared road of suffering.

We never know when God might use us or our painful experience unexpectedly. But if there’s one thing I know, God WILL use our pain for good. Romans 8:28 encourages us, “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 for them.” His own experience of suffering and pain allows Jesus to sympathize with our suffering.

 

 

Walking with another in their pain is a beautiful thing. When we do that, it brings beauty for our own ashes; a blessing that a pain-free life cannot afford. My journey through the pain of physical deformity, depression and anxiety, miscarriage, cancer, caregiving, empty nesting, and chronic pain allows me to enter in with others who suffer, which blesses them and me. Your painful past uniquely qualifies you to comfort others in similar situations. Look back on your painful journey—where can God uniquely use you to enter in with another? God not only doesn’t waste our painful past, but he uses it for good.

When we get to the other side of our painful past, we can look back and see that God was in the details, and he works every detail to align with his perfect purpose and plan for us. He promises to use everything for our good: that includes ever mistake, every hurt, every injustice, every scar, every challenge, every victory will be used for his glory. We can trust his sovereignty. We may have wrestled, questioned, and even doubted our value, our worth, or our purpose when we look upon our painful past, but through it, we will taste and see the goodness of God.

If you are experiencing some kind of painful experience today, let me encourage you that God sees. He is with you, and he will use your painful trial for your good and for his glory in his perfect way and perfect time. God never calls the equipped—he equips those he calls. Our experiences equip us for his service. God uses our pain for good; our painful past is never wasted.

Please consider picking up a copy of Sacred Scars: Resting in God’s Promise That Your Past Is Not Wasted  for you and for a friend who is struggling to find purpose in their pain. And if you’ve read Sacred Scars, would you please consider leaving an Amazon review? It helps other readers find valuable resources that can encourage them on their healing journey.

 

Your pain has a purpose. What the enemy intends for evil, God can and will use for good. Trust in His redemption, even in your toughest trials. Share on X Struggling with past pain? Know that God never wastes our suffering. He uses it to build strength, purpose, and a future filled with hope. Share on X

 

Sacred Scars: Resting in God’s Promise that Your Pain is Not Wasted

Now Available!

 

We all endure trials, pain, and hardship in this life. Too often we believe these experiences disqualify us from being useful to God. But the truth is, your past pain and brokenness serve as preparation for what God wants to do in and through you – if you will surrender to and trust him.

Just as Jesus’s scars didn’t disappear after his resurrection, our emotional or physical scars tell our story and lend credence to our testimony of God’s love and power. If you are ready to turn your past pain into present comfort and future hope, let Dr. Bengtson be your compassionate guide.

Find out more and order here: Sacred Scars