You will never discover your greatness in comfort!
Many of us wish that our destiny could be served to us on a platter. Served, it may be but many times we don’t envisage it being served on a platter of pain!
As we journey through life, we discover that life involves a series of transition (or change) from one stage to another and transition is oftentimes accompanied by adversity or pain.
Pain can be good!
The womb
The womb – the warm, welcoming and comforting cocoon for the fetus. Embracing the fetus, feeding and nurturing it for 9 months.
Suddenly, the same womb begins to work as if against the baby, to push it out (a form of rejection) because it is due time and necessary if the baby is ever going to maximize his or her potential.
In the same way, our established habits and routine in one season of our life may be unable to sustain our next season if we are to achieve our destiny.
Hence we begin to experience the pain and discomfort of transitioning…or being “pushed out”
This transition from the confining “womb” to the “realm of possibilities” in the world can be painful…perhaps that’s why it is called “labor.”
According to the dictionary:
Transition is defined as “the process or a period of changing from one state or condition to another.”
Change is a process and many times a painful one because Destiny (your divinely ordained future) will cost you!
As we journey, we must settle this in our hearts: Change takes effort, time and willingness to endure.
Let’s take a brief look at David, in the bible as an example…
Through divine arrangement, Destiny beckoned to David, the shepherd boy to transition into the greatest king that ever ruled in Israel and of course, it didn’t come without pain. Let’s look at one of such pain in David’s transition…
The pain of rejection:
Rejected by his father – 1 Samuel 16:1-11 MSG
David was the least favored in his father’s house. This was apparent when Prophet Samuel was sent by God to anoint one of Jesse’s sons to be king in the place of King Saul.
Jesse presented his seven “preferred” sons to Samuel and Samuel was blunt with Jesse saying: “God hasn’t chosen any of these.” Then he asked Jesse, “Is this it? Are there no more sons?” and to this, Jesse answered: “Well, yes, there’s the runt, but he’s out tending the sheep.” David was left out of the “qualifier league”.
His father referred to him as “The runt” (Dictionary defines runt as an undersized or weak person) or in 21st century term…the weakest link!
The lesson for us from Jesse’s rejection of David is simply this: God is not a man.
Man may see you as the weakest link in his agenda and reject you but God sees the best in you, after-all He created you and knows your value.
God did not endorse any of David’s brothers to be anointed as King.
Surprise, surprise! David, the underdog had become King…the weakest link had become the anchor!
Though in different stages of his life, David experienced a lot of rejection. However, the plan of God for him and his descendants remained firm.
He was rejected by his brother, Eliab – 1 Samuel 17:28
He was rejected by his mentor and predecessor, King Saul who was jealous of him – 1 Samuel 19
And perhaps, the most painful for David was to be rejected by his own son, Absalom – 2 Samuel 13-19
The pain of rejection is one of the tools of the devil to discourage a child of God and hinder him or her from achieving destiny.
Perhaps you are in one kind of pain or the other, (self inflicted or otherwise), we, you and I will do well if we remember life’s seasons of transitions, albeit pretty painful, yet, is necessary to fulfill our destiny.
So, don’t be afraid or intimidated by your pain and don’t resist your season of transition (change) either.
Our God is in the business of using what the enemy meant for evil for our good to make our lives a living testimony…if we are willing!
Meditate on Romans 8:35-39 and rest assured in the unfailing, unending love of God as you transition.
As always, I am happy to journey with you!