Spiritual Fitness & Living With Chronic Pain

Our pains and disappointments are not our final expressions about who we are. We are more than responses to our environments. If we’re angry with someone or express bitterness about unresolved conflict, this does not mean that anger defines our identity. That’s why Jesus commands us not to judge others. While it almost seems natural to discern others by their behaviors, we’re told to refrain from this judgment because it’s not our place to hinder others from discovering their true spiritual identity.

Tough words to live by…Nevertheless, there’s something special to be found within each one of us. Nothing can hinder us from this spiritual birthright, though we oftentimes create barriers to self-discovery because of unforgiveness and hardness of heart.

We’re created as temples for God. Jesus freely gives His Holy Spirit to live within us. And within the core of our being is a transcendent place where very few take time to ever realize the value of sharing with the Holy One. It’s a place where our sins and failures and mistakes do not close the door about having open access with God. In essence, before Him, we’re not fully defined by our reactions to the unfairness of this world. God sees us differently. By His love, He has eyes for us…

I encourage you to discover who you are based on the platform of wholeness rather than on the premise of broken heartedness.

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If you’re motivated by the pressure to make things right or to always find logical solutions to problems, then I’d like you to consider these few thoughts about newer and better living – the kind of living in which your problems are solved without your total control of every situation.

When wrestling to break certain unhealthy habits or to mend unforgivable wounds, it is imperative not to manipulate the particulars so that certain behavioral outcomes suit your own satisfaction. These personal or relational approaches, whether innate or learned, to solve the humanly unsolvable will bind you to the problem instead of freeing you into the depths of kingdom living.

The action of change occurs when you leave the older, controlling ways for the newer, no matter the struggle. The old code binds you to the law, in which you try to line up everything perfectly for moral approval and hopefully, for love. Yet, the old strategies do not perpetuate an environment for change nor do they facilitate an atmosphere for intimacy.

On the other hand, you can participate in change by becoming more intimate with God. This is how grace practically begins to solve your problems without your notice of its influence. In essence, it’s a matter of passion over pressure. It comes down to the rudimentary parts about trust. If truly desired by you, God will work on your behalf without your daily appraisal regarding the process of change.

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Look around your environment. Typically and almost automatically, your conscious view perceives things by how you feel on the inside. Practically speaking, your inner feelings directly affect how you see things about you. When feeling terrible, people tend to see the darker sides of conflict about them. The chances for light to pour through the cracks are slim when feeling completely depressed and overwhelmed. As a result the vision of hopelessness tends to brush across the canvas of life, shutting out other possibilities of vitality. Good never seems good enough. And bad can seem heavier on the soul than an anvil wrapped around your neck.

If you truly profess belief in Jesus, then your vision about life can change dramatically, as your mind processes things differently. Not everything you see depends on how you feel. Your inner eyesight can reflect the goodness of God without you feeling very well at all.

Let’s think about something that changed my outlook about my outer environment though my inner world acutely expressed painful turmoil. I believe this will also help you to view the reality of the world around you from a fresh and healthy perspective.

When you live in Christ, your own life is not your own. You are an extension of Christ. I’ve got to pause on this thought for a second. Truly contemplate what I’m trying to convey.

You are an extension of Christ, like a branch grafted into the vine, who is Jesus. Hence, everything about your inner world is nourished and transformed by the regenerating love of Christ; and in a sense, making you the “same” as Him because you are united with Him. This sameness is due to His action of uniquely forming Himself within you. Connection and reformation are diligently working on the inner part of your being, so you can see the world differently – specifically from an eternal perspective.

There is a new life awaiting you. It is a life devoted to living for the kingdom of God. Regardless of what’s on the inside, the redemptive power of Christ changes you into something new – in which you will fully see the greatness of this life, despite some unattractiveness found in its outer appearances…

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While it might seem like childlike strength is weak and underdeveloped, in terms of ability to overcome fear and adversity, nothing could be further from the truth when considering its mighty influence relative to belief. 

Simply, having childlike faith in God proves victorious against any obstacles of life. 

“Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3, NASB).

Once any of us becomes a child of God our lives are eternally changed, including our very own sin nature and the new life to be fully lived by faith.

Think about children for a second.  Don’t they often wander helplessly in the wrong direction?  Don’t they also hurt themselves foolishly?  Don’t they seem to lack understanding?  Of course, we could answer “yes” to all of these questions, but it does not mean that frailty and foolish willfulness are the only dominant features of children.

On the contrary, children are drawn to those who are peaceful and happy.  They flinch from those who are crusty and angry.  Children have fresh new perspectives about how to live with curiosity and trust.  It’s from this reference point that we can glean some wisdom from childlike faith – because it helps to peel away the layers of adult hardness from our own hearts, including skepticism and bitterness and unforgiveness about the brokenness of our human condition.

Childlike faith allows us to jump into the lap of Jesus Christ, spiritually, in which we are made pure and whole.  We don’t have to carry around the baggage of past mistakes, regardless of how huge they might seem to us or how adversely they may have affected others, especially those so close to us.  Instead, as children of God, we can freely confess our unspeakable sins and live by His forgiving grace.  Like children, we can have a new start at life, learning how to trust God even more and how to get along with others even better.

Isn’t this truly love in its highest form and most comprehensive sense? I think so…Christ had an uncanny way of accepting all children regardless of fault.  He really understood the makeup of children and the development of humanity.

It’s only the true humanity of Christ that can bring us into the true conception of God, and also, into true interrelations with Him.

Consider adopting childlike faith to strengthen your position against any kind of adversity, even those that are self-induced.  These seem to be especially painful…

Keep me on your favorites.  For more about living with chronic pain and spiritual healing visit me at www.gordonselley.com.

You must be free before you can become who you are created to be.  Free from what you might ask…

For many, the doors to freedom seem tightly shut because of chronic pain.  Restriction and contraction inevitably define the lifestyles for several who are chronically wounded.  On the other hand, you don’t have to become part of the despairing statistics of those who are chained by horrific pain.

The freedom I’m referring to pertains directly to sin.  Sin turns out to be astonishingly nonpartisan and unoriginal.  It affects everyone who has not experienced the conversion from spiritual death onto new life.

And based on this reference, it is for freedom that Christ wants to set you free.  It is the highest ideal of a gift you can ever receive.  Simply, by placing your faith in Him, you will be instantaneously set free to discover your real self and your real reason for living.

Imagine what you probably can’t imagine right now…Your spiritual rebirth will fling the doors wide open to live freely as a new creation, no longer bound by anything of this world. 

I encourage you to deal with chronic pain from this starting point – a place where you are set free regardless…

Keep me on your favorites.  Please click onto www.gordonselley.com for information regarding living with chronic pain, as well as spiritual healing. 

Even when the skies might look gray, you can still be a part of a new transformed way of living. We tend to focus on the power and healing of God; instead, I encourage you to meditate on the root, which is the knowledge of the love of God.

What does it mean to “know” something to be true? Well…you can only “know” about truth when you share in the same nature of it. The seed which germinates a new transformed life comes from God. Consequently, when you know God, you’re going to discover the way of absolute transformation. It’s found in the knowledge of the love of God through His Son.

Why are we sometimes attracted to the imperfect and error and dark clouds of the sky? Maybe because that is how you feel. Maybe this has been a way of truth for you for quite some time?

To counteract this way of living, again, I encourage you to know God and His heart for you. The magnetic draw toward righteousness and love will become overwhelming, filled with peace and freedom, even in the midst of your painful suffering.

“Knowing God’s heart means consistently, radically, and very concretely to announce and reveal God is love and only love, and that every time fear, isolation, or despair begin to invade the human soul – this is not something that comes from God.”

It’s time to leave the gray clouds for the wondrous beauty of heaven…

Keep me on your favorites.  Please click onto www.gordonselley.com for more information regarding living with chronic pain and spiritual healing. 

“Leprosy is a disease without pain.  No remedy is found because the nerves don’t work.  Lepers lose their fingers and toes in accidents because they cannot feel any pain.

When the church does not feel pain with those that are part of them, the Church’s nerves also become dead.  Then the Church loses parts of its body.  It loses power to touch souls.  It loses credibility before the world.  On the other side, the suffering church gives the whole church strength to fight for Christ. 

Suffering makes the soul to cry out and look for help, to draw strength for the source of help – Jesus Christ” (Anonymous).

Keep me on your favorites.  Please click onto www.gordonselley.com for more information about living with chronic pain, as well as spiritual healing. 

From a friend of mine, whose name is Randall Niles; I share from his facebook blog a quote by C.S. Lewis, “Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance.”

And when experiencing what seems like unmerited tragedy, this is when we are soulfully equipped, like Job, to actually see God’s unmerited grace for our lives. In essence, carry this thought for Sunday…God does care more about our faith rather than our pleasures. So how we respond to trials matters…We’re definitely integrated into the complexities of everyday life and beyond.

“From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind; from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth – he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do” (Psalm 33:13-15, NIV).

Keep me on your favorites.   Please click onto www.gordonselley.com for more information about living with chronic pain, as well as spiritual healing.

Q: My life’s trashed…Practically speaking, what should I do to start over?

A: Don’t wait any longer to make changes.

Practically speaking…I recommend that you get a blank sheet of paper out and then begin to reconstruct your life. Depending on your marital status as single or married, either start this process by yourself or obviously, share in these life-changing decisions with your partner.

On this blank piece of paper, write down ten things you must have, and then write down ten desires of your heart. Don’t be limited by what you pen on the paper. The sky is the limit. While this exercise might take some time, I encourage you to finish this initial step within one week.

After you, and perhaps your partner, have done this exercise, then lift these requests onto God in prayer. By doing this, God will purify your motives and help to direct you on the right path of transformation. As you make your plans, God will surely direct your footsteps.

With certainty, expect fear and doubt to sharply enter into this process. On the other hand, I again encourage you to stand tall, remain steadfast in belief, and confront your fears head-on. You have nothing to lose, except to walk out a new life. And if you profess the Christian faith, you can assuredly look forward to walking out a new life with a new spirit.

Although making changes pose several difficulties, ponder this point: Very few things compare to being who you really are and doing what you’re really supposed to be doing.

This is a simple way, yet excellent, to practically start your life over again…

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If your prayers are simply requests for personal needs and/or desires, then I encourage you to examine your life a bit more closely. Especially when feeling ongoing pain or depression, I know how easy it is to fall prey to the desperate need of wanting to get rid of gnawing pain no matter what. Nothing else seems very relevant at this point. Pain then becomes the cornerstone of your thoughts and therefore, your prayer requests.

But what are you going to do if your pain becomes part of your human growth? What if God doesn’t alleviate your suffering after days upon days, months upon months and years upon years requesting remedy through prayer?

Not to diminish the power of God relevant to healing or to that of prayer, but sometimes, the experience of suffering is used for your good, not necessarily for your demise – even if you’re unaware of some of its benevolent qualities.

Edmund Soper writes, “Without the experience of suffering a man’s nature remains shallow. Pain that has been lived through gives to character a depth that seldom comes from the experience of happiness.”

In a sense, your prayer life is an intermediary discussion between God and you. It defines your religious expression with God. The demand of prayer is not for certain wounds to be healed or for financial provisions to be met or for brokenness to be instantly restored. Prayer is much more than this.

Mere reformation does not depend upon your evaluation of God’s performance during prayer. Prayer, in its highest form, purifies your unspoken desires and gives you much more than you can fathom. It leads you into the reality of a new will and a new life to be lived, whether pain or depression are a part of the construct.

To glean another insight from Edmund Soper, he writes, “No desire is ever quite the same after it has been offered up before God in prayer; a desire which has found expression in prayer is inevitably purified and elevated. Prayer, therefore, is the training-ground for character.”

Keep me on your favorites.  For more about living with chronic pain and spiritual healing visit me at www.gordonselley.com.