What fire are you currently facing?
- Is it a broken relationship? Maybe you experienced betrayal from someone you loved and trusted. Or someone fell out of love with you and left, and now you have no idea what you’re going to do without them.
- Is it loneliness? Maybe you’ve been single for a long time and just wish you weren’t. All your friends are married now, and you’re tired of being by yourself.
- Is it physical pain? Maybe you’re experiencing debilitating or chronic pain that is keeping you from living the way you used to.
- Is it a mental health struggle? Maybe you’re fighting anxiety, depression, or even suicidal thoughts.
Whatever fire you’re facing, let me first say this: Your pain is real. I’m sorry that you are going through it. I’m sure it hurts, and I know it’s not fair. I don’t know what you’re going through, but I know it hurts.
But what if you changed the way you thought about your pain? What if you started seeing your pain as the prerequisite for purpose? I know the thing you’re going through right now is painful, but it’s not pointless — there’s more purpose in your pain than you could ever imagine.
What if, instead of focusing on the pain, you started focusing on the purpose?
Because your pain can help somebody else. What if you fixed your focus on finding somebody going through that same kind of pain and started looking for ways to help and encourage them?
Applying purpose to your pain changes everything; it’s the key ingredient to helping you stay in the fight. It’s how you kiss the fire in front of you and walk away whistling.
That purpose gives you three really important things you’re going to need to kiss the fire: joy, peace, and confidence.
1. Purpose Gives You Joy
The apostle Paul understood that pain is the prerequisite for purpose.
During his ministry he went through all sorts of persecution for preaching the gospel. He was arrested multiple times and spent the majority of his final years either sitting in a jail cell or under house arrest. Think about how frustrating that must’ve been. Paul was doing good things. He was just trying to help people and was getting punished for it.
I’m a professional pity-party thrower. I can take any little predicament and turn it into a massive problem. If I were in Paul’s situation, there’s a good chance I would have complained about it to anyone who would listen.
But Paul did the exact opposite.
He immediately noticed how much purpose there was in his pain. And so he wrote a letter from prison to the church at Philippi that is all about joy. In just four short chapters, Paul mentioned joy or rejoicing sixteen times, including
In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. — Philippians 1:4–5
But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. — Philippians 2:17
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! — Philippians 4:4
That’s crazy.
One of my favorite things about the apostle Paul is how much joy he had even while he was imprisoned and persecuted.
How was Paul able to stay so full of joy despite everything going on in his life? The answer is purpose. Paul’s life was about something so much bigger than him. And so even though he was facing an enormous fire, he knew he was still walking in his purpose. In fact, he even said the pain and persecution were helping people hear about Jesus. Check this out:
Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear. — Philippians 1:12–14
Instead of throwing himself a pity party, Paul was preaching to the guards, and they were getting saved. He found purpose in the pain, and because of that, he had joy despite being in prison.
I’m telling you, the same thing is true for you. There is more purpose in your pain than you could ever imagine.
I don’t know what you’re going through, and I won’t pretend to understand the fire you are facing. But what I do know is the pain is not pointless; God is using it. Let that truth fill your life with joy today.
2. Purpose Gives You Peace
Years ago I was meeting with my counselor while in the middle of a crazy season at church. I told him that I felt beat-¬up and overwhelmed and that I figured I needed to take some time off.
He asked me if I was planning to get away for a few days, and I told him, “I don’t know. The logical part of my brain knows I need rest. But as great as that sounds, I’m not sure it’s what I need right now.”
“Well, there’s a difference between rest and peace,” he said.
“You can sit on a beach and look at the most beautiful scenery in the world and not have peace. You’ll be physically resting, but the only way to find peace is knowing that you’re in the will of God.”
Over the years I’ve learned (and relearned) how true that statement is.
Vacations are great and rest is important, but the best way to experience the peace we are all searching for is to step into our God-given purposes.
Peace isn’t found on a vacation.
Peace isn’t found at a beach.
Both of those things are great for rest, but true peace is found in doing what God has called you to do.
And if pain is the prerequisite for purpose, that means your pain is not pointless. The fire you are facing today is actually the very thing that is going to help you experience peace tomorrow.
Come back for Part 2 tomorrow.
Excerpted with permission from Kiss the Fire by Shawn Johnson, copyright Shawn Johnson.
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Your Turn
What fire are you in today? What purpose might God have in it? And, what would change for you if you fixed your focus to what good might come of this if you let God use you in the middle of it to help others and share the Gospel? ~ Devotionals Daily
