Pain Breeds Purpose

I grew up in the dusty streets of Lotlhakane, in Mahikeng. A typical girl with no dreams or goals, living a life with no meaning, a life that was surrounded by pain. I was the kind of a girl who people said, "she will never amount to anything". It was a painful experience. I was dying inside, yet kept smiling. As I grew older, I thought the pain I used to feel would go away, little did I know that it would only increase. I found myself in very toxic relationships, I got hurt, played on and talked about. But I kept going.

I have been through so many struggles, pain and disappointments in my life that I know how it feels to sleep with no food in the house, to lose someone you loved with all of your heart and to be played. I know how it feels to be called names and things you are not. I’ve made so many mistakes, repeatedly, hoping that I would get to a better solution. I know how it feels to be rejected and taken for granted. But through it all, God gave me courage to walk through those painful moments, because with pain comes purpose. He brought me through those difficult times to teach, train, and prepare me for everything that I am today and everything I will be in the future. 

Had I not been through that pain, I wouldn't have stepped into my purpose or become closer to God. The Bible in Jeremiah 29: 11 says,  “‘for I know the plans I have for you’, declares the Lord. ‘The plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’”. Because God understands that life is not a straight line of unchallenged successes, He brings pain in His plans too but the good thing with this pain is that, it’s not there to do any harm but to drive us into the person He created us to be. 

I like the story of Lebo Guguluza. He lost his fortune in 1999, went into debt worth about 4 million rands and he calls that period “the most PAINFUL time of his life.” , yet he learned invaluable business lessons that helped him settle all his debt and build a company that made turnover of R2 million. Lebo today is an entrepreneur, a media mogul and a motivational speaker with a net worth of 300 million rands ($19 million). He discourages young entrepreneurs from the lure of fast money, a trap he calls hustling. God walked him through all that, so that he can teach young and aspiring entrepreneurs how to manage and run their businesses. Had it not been for the pain that he went through, when he lost all his money and having that much debt, he wouldn't have known about his purpose. 

Where are you in life? Spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically? You may be going through emotional pain all because God wants you to learn something, so that you can teach about it. Your relationship life may be in shambles, simply because God wants you to understand what love is and teach about it. You might be overweight and dealing with losing the weight, because God is calling you to change lives of people through fitness or you may have been challenged spiritually because God wants your testimony to touch many lives and to bring His people closer to Him. 

Don't look at your situations and see problems and see defeat, look at them and see elevation. Every problem, need, rejection, pain and situation is bringing you closer to your purpose, for this pain you are feeling is breeding your purpose. Look at the world’s richest men, they had to be rejected and to feel pain in order for them to be where they are today.

What type of pain are you GROWING through? Identify where it’s coming from and take down the lesson you have learned so far that may be a direction of your purpose. When you step into your purpose, that’s where fulfilment is, if you haven’t learned anything, you will be the same as you were yesterday!