A Cup of Pain

I remember when I was offered the opportunity to become a Singles Pastor. What wonderful excitement to know that the Lord had gauged me fit to serve in an esteemed capacity. I asked Him what would be the foundation of the ministry and the answer was spiritual maturity, moral integrity and financial prosperity. Although the joy was real, I could not help remembering at times the intermittent anguish and frustration of other pastors and leaders as they worked to impart godly wisdom and encouragement to their members.
At times it seemed that nothing would produce the desired results for some.I have experienced some of those same unmet expectations as I have listened and prayed for a resolution to a host of challenges that seem to engulf too many of God’s sons and daughters. I have wondered why people who are devoted to serving the Lord have to endure so many trials and suffer seemingly so unjustly. Spiritually, emotionally,physically and financially, the scales of justice seem to be tilted in favor of those who seem to care little or not at all for the ways or thoughts of God.

King David said that from youth to old age he had not seen the righteous forsaken or his descendants begging for bread ( Psalms 37:25 ).I have heard from others and experienced myself, that when the decision is made to live for God, life is instantly reversed from negative to positive; from poverty to wealth.
However, when we choose to become servants of the Lord, the hard truth is that pain,sorrow and failure will become some of the ingredients used to produce a man or woman of God.
Looking at Job we can see a godly man who was blameless and upright but too often feared that his children may have sinned against God.

1Cor.11:3-6 reveals the headship in God’s kingdom. It says that God is the head of Jesus,Jesus is the head of man and man is the head of woman ( Married ). When a man prays and prophesies with his head covered he dishonors his head who is Jesus. This means that whenever he allows anything to compete with Jesus covering him,( Fear,Doubt,Unbelief,anger etc.), he dishonors his head.Verse 5 says that when a woman prays and prophesies with her head uncovered she dishonors her head who would be her husband.
I have been in church services when these scriptures were spoken by the pastor and the women would cover their heads with a kleenex tissue.Covered and uncovered in these scriptures were not meant to be literal but spiritual for literal application in marriages that have been submitted to biblical direction, guidance and instruction.

Looking at King David we can see a steadfast man of valor falling into the blatant sin of adultery,deception and murder.In spite of all of our failures, we have the chance to be transformed in order to know the true purpose of life and to overcome the deep, hard cold battles a person can face who do not want to live without touches that can only come from the Almighty God.
I have heard songs sung that say that we want to be more like Jesus and in our hearts we do.However,to be like Christ we must be willing to face what He faced.Though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered ( Hebrews 5:8 ). To be more like Christ at some point in life we more likely than not will be served a cup of pain.

Listen to Him in the Garden asking the Father if it is possible to let His cup of pain pass from Him. Job said that he had been cast into the mire; that his eyes poured out tears to God when his cup was served. David said that his couch was made into a bed of tears; that his eyes were consumed with grief when he drank his cup of pain. (Psalms 119:67).
The most difficult cup of pain I’ve had to deal with was the death of my first child.
A man once asked for prayer because he had sought God all night to take away his pain. He had been wearing some clothes that were given to him by the wife of a man who had dealt with many diseases in his life. After getting victory over this dilemma,he said that he was instructed not to throw the clothing away or give them away but to burn them.

Those who get to the cross must go through Gethsemane.