“I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.]” John 16:33 AMP
I have experienced many trials and tribulations in life that have caused me great pain, just as all of you have. Some pain was inflicted on me while other pain I inflicted on myself. Through years of study, counseling, and courses on healing I always walked away still feeling the sting of the pain. Even though I had great breakthroughs in many areas I was still suffering from the effects of the trauma I experienced. I tried to release it, but it had become such a part of me, that it actually became a definition of who I was as a person. It wasn’t a conscious decision on my part to hold onto the pain, but the reality was I did hold onto it.
One day when reading a book on overcoming past trauma I read something that changed my life forever! The author had great intentions in what he wrote but somehow I knew he was wrong! He said the pain from the past is something we have to deal with for the rest of our lives. It never goes away! That statement angered me because it went against everything I knew to be true about God’s promises. I turned my anger into motivation to find the truth so I could be free from the pain and help others become free as well.
In my study of the Word and through prayer God led me once again to this verse. I went online and looked it up in the Amplified Bible. I had read the verse, “For I have overcome the world” many times but when I read it in this translation I found my answer. On the Cross Jesus overcame satan and deprived him of his power to harm us anymore. It doesn’t mean we won’t face trials and tribulation but it does mean that the sting of it, is not something we have to put up with for the rest of our lives. Jesus conquered satan so that we may be conquerors in life.
But if this is true then why do so many people still suffer the pains of the past, just like I did? The answer is that satan has deceived us into believing our own reality of circumstance over the truth of God’s Word. He knows that when we are in the midst of painful memories we feel powerless! He knows that if we feel powerless in our own pain, we will be powerless in helping others through their pain. In order to release the pain we have to understand that all power in pain was defeated at the Cross. And we have to understand that in believing God’s truth over our reality we can turn our pain into power for purpose! And that purpose is for us to fulfill the Scripture found in 2 Corinthians 1:3-5.
It reads, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ.”
It is God’s desire for us to stand in faith on His promises and to use His promises to dispel the myths the enemy tries to get us to believe! When we release the pain in the memories, God comforts us and turns our pain into a powerful tool of healing for others. Since releasing my pain I have coached many men, women, and teenagers through their painful experiences, and I have been able to teach them how to release their pain. Now they are doing the same thing for the people in their lives. Our pain that once crippled us has now become a powerful tool and we use it to help others!
I want to encourage you today to ask God if there is pain in your life or from your past that you are holding onto. Ask Him to open the eyes of your understanding and to give you wisdom on how to release your pain. You have to be willing to let it go and you need to understand that when you let it go, it is important to spend time in the Word and in prayer, asking God to fill you with His truth! The amount of time it takes to do it doesn’t matter. For each of us, depending on the amount of pain we have suffered, the timing is different. What does matter is being willing to do it!
Prayer: I praise you for taking my pain on your back and for nailing it to the Cross so that I do not have to suffer from it any longer! I believe by faith that as I release my pain, I will be able to comfort others who are in the midst of pain. I also believe by faith that you will turn my pain into power for purpose and will become an instrument of healing! I praise you for working all things, including my pain, for my good, and your glory, because I love you and have been called according to your purpose. Amen
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