Grace and Pain

“My grace is sufficient for you” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Chronic pain is a thief.

It steals our energy, our joy, our ability to function, and even our faith if we are not careful. It changes us, both for the good and the bad. It limits us, but it also deepens us. I have a painful autoimmune disease that affects every bone and joint in my body. I have suffered with this for decades, and now age is rapidly making it worse. Medical intervention helps but doesn’t cure. Long nights and painful days persist, and time has forgotten how to fly.

Yet God’s grace is sufficient.

Sometimes I can feel His grace in a tangible way. Some distraction crops up, something pleasant occurs, and the pain lessons for a brief moment. Other times I have to choose to believe that His grace is enough for me. I meditate on Scripture and I remind myself of God’s goodness and His sovereign wisdom in every circumstance of my daily life. But, most often, I find God’s grace in prayer, my own and those of others.

That is when the Spirit ministers as only He can do.

And such is the sufficiency of His grace.