When Life Gets Hard

THIS WEEK’S BOLD STEP DEVOTION

It may or may not surprise you to learn that as many as 50 percent of boys experience a bone fracture before the age of 17. I’m sure I added to that figure with the number of broken bones I incurred while growing up! My mom is one of the most patient people I know—she dealt with so many mishaps that resulted in my breaking a bone!

Dealing with hurt and pain in our lives is a part of the human experience, but each of us has a choice as to how we’ll respond to it. Pastor Charles Swindoll says, “Life is 10% of what happens to you and 90% of how you respond to it.” In essence, we can either let the frustrations and pain discourage and disable us or take those same hurts and turn them into something that makes us stronger. A word of caution for those of you who fall into the first camp—unless you deal with your pain head on, those undealt hurts will deal with you.

With that in mind, what can you do right now if you’re experiencing some type of physical or emotional pain in your life? Here are four “choices” I’ve gleaned from my own life that may also help you when processing hurt:

1. Choose healing over disability. When you’re weak and injured, it’s easy to take the path of least resistance and not work at it, but real healing comes when you choose not to ignore it.
2. Choose peace over conflict. People who are hurt often hurt back, so we must work hard at peace. If we don’t, hurt can become the lens by which we see the world around us.
3. Choose grace. There is great power in giving people what they don’t deserve, because we’ve received from God what we don’t deserve.
4. Choose release over bitterness. The only way to rid bitterness from our lives is through forgiveness.

Choices like this are possible when we understand that God is the redeemer of pain.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” (Hebrews 12:1–3).

Listen to the sermon series: Hurt

Part 1Part 2

Ministry Update from Mark

I’m so excited to usher in what I hope becomes a new tradition for many of you: Founder’s Week in October! That’s right, we’re making it easier than ever to visit Moody Bible Institute for this beloved, annual, free Bible conference. It starts this Wednesday, October 18, and continues through Friday, October 20! The theme of this year’s conference is “Rekindled: Fanning the Flame of Your Calling” with speakers Dr. Joe Stowell and Nick Gatzke, along with worship by Leeland. Don’t miss it!

Learn More! foundersweek.org