Pain & November Sundays
Dear church,
Nearly every week, I’m in a deep discussion with someone who is dealing with profound pain. In addition to studying Scripture, my week is often made up of discussing the profound pain that someone is in the middle of or praying for someone in the middle of their pain. It may be someone in our church family, it may be someone in our community, and sometimes the conversation is with another pastor. Pain is ubiquitous. Pain is everywhere. And as many conversations as I might have in a given week with someone going through profound pain, my guess is there are multitudes more.
The source of the pain can be varied. But pain is there.
Perhaps it’s physical pain. Or maybe it’s relational pain. Sometimes it’s spiritual pain you are going through. I’d like to take some space in this week’s ‘Dear church’ to discuss three thoughts about pain.
First, Jesus genuinely cares about your pain. One of the Bible verses I quote the most often is found in the New Testament in Peter’s letter to followers of Jesus.
“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” ~ 1 Peter 5:7 NIV
It is the wonder of the ages that Jesus cares for us, but He truly does! No matter what the pain is and no matter where the pain comes from – you may rest your head on your pillow tonight with the assurance that the God of the universe truly cares for you. Jesus cares about your pain. You are not alone in this. He cares for you.
Second, do not shut yourself off from others while in your pain. The temptation from the enemy of our soul is to shut ourselves off from others. For some reason, we have been conditioned to build walls while we are in pain. We tend to suffer in silence. We do this so that we can protect others. We think, ‘If I have to be in pain, then I’ll be in pain by myself.’ Instead of shutting yourself off from others, lean into the close relationships God has provided for you. Resist the urge to be selfish in your pain. Rather, tell someone. Share your pain with someone. Let them pray, encourage, and love you. After all, it is oftentimes impossible to pray, encourage, and love someone specifically when people don’t know about your pain. It’s been said that “sorrow shared is sorrow halved. Joy shared is joy doubled.”
Third, look for opportunities to love someone. It’s hard to do when you’re in the middle of your pain, but loving someone while you are in pain, is the most Christlike thing you can do. Think about the life of Jesus Christ. Oftentimes He was in the middle of severe and profound pain. Yet even in those instances where Jesus Himself was going through pain – He made himself available to those around Him. He took time for others and loved as God would have Him love. Looking for an opportunity to love is an exercise in trusting Him. And as you trust Him, He will help you love others. If you are in pain, my heart goes out to you. I’d invite you to give me a call. Let me be a person that listens and loves you in the midst of your pain. I’d love to chat with you and pray with you.
As we look forward to the month of November we have four unique Sundays you’ll to want be a part of.
On Sunday, November 7th the world will honor a Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. The persecuted church refers to those followers of Jesus Christ who are actively being persecuted because of their faith in Jesus Christ. The persecution of Christians is worse today than at any time in history. At the present moment, Christians are the most persecuted religious group in the world. Our special guest on that Sunday will be Ravi Kumar. Ravi is a dear friend of mine and is the founder of Real Hope India. He will share first-hand experiences of the persecuted church in India. As a matter of protection for him, the churches & ministry in India, we will not be live streaming this event so please be prepared to join us in person for this special Sunday.
On Sunday, November 14th we will have a special presentation from Hope Clinic for Women. HC for W is a free pregnancy clinic in Roseburg for all women, especially those experiencing an unplanned, unsupported, or uninsured pregnancy. They provide pregnancy testing, limited ultrasound exams, life-affirming support services, and reproductive grief care. Their Executive Director, Destiny Molatore, will join us and challenge us with how God is moving in Douglas County. HC for W is an organization we support through our missions giving and we’re extremely excited to host them on this Sunday.
On Sunday, November 21st we will have a special Sunday entitled Hope for Mental Health Sunday. Pastor Hugh Heinrichsen will be joining us as we seek to break the silence, reduce the stigma, and remind people that it is not a sin to be sick. This Sunday will inspire and challenge us as we seek to equip our church to become a place of refuge and hope for those in pain. Hugh has been a pastor in our community for over 20 years and is a pastoral counselor who has helped many people find hope.
To close November we will have a Gratitude Service on Sunday, November 28th. Following the Thanksgiving holiday, we will spend a Sunday morning simply giving thanks. The day will feature songs of praise and thanksgiving as we’re led through prayers of gratitude and joy.
As you can see, we’ve put a lot of prayer and thought into these Sundays in November. Would you pray with me that God would be glorified, and our church inspired to draw nearer to Him during these November Sundays?
I love you church.
Pastor Daniel
(In upcoming issues of ‘Dear church’ I’ll tell you about our road trip with our foster baby and how to establish short and long term healthy habits and rhythms)
