Pain comes in a variety of styles and sizes. We are provided ample opportunities for good old physical pain. Then there is emotional pain, psychological pain, spiritual pain and perhaps intellectual pain (although I may not be qualified to experience that last one). Loss is painful, change can be painful and I don’t care what they say, words can hurt just as much or more than stick and stones. Pain does not discriminate based on race, age, gender, religion or socio-economic status. Perhaps most importantly; in my experience, growth almost always involves some kind of pain and or suffering. Sometimes it seems as if we humans were designed to learn things the hard way. Like it or not… pain is an inevitable and often a major part of our human experience.
2 Corinthians 1:5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.
Why would God make pain such an integral part of the human experience? Why is there so much suffering in the world? How can God allow righteous people to suffer?
I don’t really like thinking about pain, much less writing about it. I feel compelled to write this because my body is showing clear signs of wearing out. I will not bore you with the details but suffice to say that physical pain, in several places, is now my constant and unwelcome companion. I am not complaining; my physical life has been truly blessed to this point, but I need now to understand the lesson that God is providing through this experience of pain. Unfortunately, recognizing that pain is designed to help us learn does not always help us comprehend the lesson. After much reflection, I believe that my body is screaming (at me) to “GET MORE FLEXIBLE”.
Do you not see how necessary a world of pains and troubles is to school an intelligence and make it a soul? John Keats
We have a choice about how to respond to the pain that nags at our bodies or our hearts. The trick is to not allow pain to nag at our souls. Understanding that pain is a natural part of the challenge of life can help. I would not actually go so far as to say that pain is a blessing, but there are countless instances where pain was the first step on the road to blessings.
There are dozens of different modalities that we humans have devised for coping with our smorgasbord of pains; from drugs to acupuncture to titanium bracelets. No matter how we choose to manage our various pains, knowing that God is there to comfort us and that we are part of a greater good is vital for our spiritual health in this regard. One key to our ability to deal gracefully with physical pain is to understand deeply that our bodies are but temporary vessels in which our spirits dwell. Life is challenge, is it not? When we begin to appreciate the eternal nature of our soul, it makes sense to challenge ourselves (and our bodies) to help change this world for the better. instead of dwelling on our inevitable, persistent and multifaceted pain, we now need to find ways, through God’s grace, to rise above the pain and bless our families and communities.
Thank you for the gift pain… may the lessons to be learned come more easily and gracefully as we move along the road toward God’s redemption.