Jun. 05, 2022

1.  GOD’S PLAN FOR CREATION DIDN’T INCLUDE PAIN AND SUFFERING

 "God saw all that he had made, and it was very good."          Genesis 1:31

2.  GOD HAS A PURPOSE IN YOUR PAIN.

…There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.                                                    1 Peter 1:6-7 NLT

3.  GOD IS PRESENT EVEN IN YOUR PAIN.

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.   Psalm 46:1

But [God] said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness…    2 Corinthians 12:9

…Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.   That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.   2 Corinthians 12:9-10

 [God] does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.  For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.     Psalm 103:10-12

 4.  BITTER OR BETTER:  IT’S MY CHOICE

 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”  John 16:33

“Even though you are temporarily harassed by all kinds of trials . . . This is no accident—it happens to prove your faith, which is infinitely more valuable than gold”  

1 Peter 1:6-7 PHILLIPS