The Purpose in the Pain

". . . shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips." ~Job 2:10

The story of Job is amazing. Job was godly and righteous, probably more than any of us now, yet he went through more pain and trials then many people ever will.
Why?
Well, God had a plan. God knew what He was doing from the very beginning. God was honoured and glorified through Job's testimony, his faithfulness to God in his trials.
What if Job never would have had to go through what he did?
He probably wouldn't have had a book of the Bible written about him. We'd be missing an extremely helpful example of how to respond to our trials.
The story of Job tells me something. I can always trust God. Regardless of what is happening in my life. If I lost my job, lost family members, faced illness, was attacked by terrorists. ( yeah, that's the best modern-day equivalent I could think of for Chaldeans stealing all your camels. Which happened to Job too.)
In short, just because something is painful doesn't mean that it's not what is best.
In Job 5: 17-18 Job says,
"Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not the chastening of the Almighty: For he maketh sore, and bindeth up: he woundeth, and his hands make whole."
I've heard this analogy in the past,
when a bone breaks and then heals, it rarely breaks in the same place again. Because the healing process had made the bone stronger in that spot then it was before.
Do you ever feel like God has dealt you a spiritual exercise? (I know Christian/Athlete analogies aren't usually my favourite, but bear with me.)
For example. I went to a graduation party awhile ago and played volleyball for four hours. No joke. And I'll admit for quite a few days after that I was really sore. But if I would have been on a volleyball team and played everyday, eventually I would have become stronger. And I wouldn't have been that sore. Building muscle requires being sore at some point. No pain no gain, right?
So, do you ever feel like a certain trial you're going through is just that, a workout for your faith? Whether it's a certain insecurity you're struggling with, a difficult family situation, an illness, or maybe an issue you're trying to work through with a friend. Whatever it may be, have you noticed that when you decide to try and look at the bigger picture and say, "Okay God, I trust You, help me learn, strengthen my faith and help me through this." Then you begin to see the trial you're going through in a whole new light. It may still hurt, and it's still going to be hard. But you're no longer without hope trying to deal with it by yourself. You're leaning on God to provide you with the strength you need. And you begin to see the purpose in the pain.
Until I can begin to see the purpose in the pain I won't be able to respond in the right way to unforeseen circumstances and trials in my life.
In the first chapter of Job, after his children have all died, and his wealth destroyed, this is what he says,
". . . the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away: blessed be the name of the Lord."

So, what can I learn from Job's life.
Trials I face are not a sign that God has left me, that He's displeased with me, or that He doesn't love me. In fact they're there because He loves me and cares about my future. He loves me so much, He wants to make me stronger. He wants to teach me something. It's not always fun, and it's never easy but I can trust that God has a plan and a purpose for the pain. I may not always choose to see it. I may not always understand it. But God always has a plan. A plan that's in my best interst.
Why? Well, that's just how Jesus is.