“Pain. We all know what it tastes like. Whether its source is physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual, its interruptions in our lives disrupts and reshapes. It intercepts our hopes and plans; it rearranges our dreams. It always leaves a mark” says Tim Hansel in his book “You gotta keep dancing”. I did not yet meet a person who does not have any scars in life, of course I met several people who have learnt the art of covering their scars very well.
Pain, scars and tragedies are the common denominators of human life, we can never completely avoid pain or tragedies, we may learn to live with them or even better live beyond them by the grace of God, but can never escape them in this life. Therefore the most important question we should ask ourselves is not why we experience pain or if we will experience pain but how we will respond to pain in our own lives. Pain, death, loss and tragedy have been all over the news in the recent past. I also witnessed many of my own friends, church members and family members go through very painful experiences. It is difficult to be indifferent to pain; therefore I decided to put some thought into our response to pain.
Pain, scars and tragedies are the common denominators of human life, we can never completely avoid pain or tragedies…
One of the greatest myths our generation bombards us with always is the possibility of a pain-free life. Clyde Reid in his book “Celebrate the temporary” says: “One of the most common obstacles to celebrating life fully is our avoidance of pain. We dread pain. We fear pain. We do anything to escape pain. Our culture reinforces our avoidance of pain by assuring us that we can live a painless life. Advertisements constantly encourage us to believe that life can be pain-free. But to live without pain is a myth. To live without pain is to live half a life, without fullness of life. This is an unmistakable, clear, unalterable fact. Many of us do not realize that pain and joy run together. When we cut ourselves off from pain, we have unwittingly cut ourselves off from joy as well.”
Our culture reinforces our avoidance of pain by assuring us that we can live a painless life… To live without pain is to live half a life, without fullness of life.
Another myth which most Christians fall into is the idea that since we are God’s children we should be spared from all of these tragedies and pain. Kristy Cussens notes “Christians suffer too. There is no getting around that. The healing which never comes: the relationship, which despite everyone’s best efforts just fell apart; the death of a loved one: the financial crisis which seems insurmountable; the impossible job situation; the desperate prayer which seems unanswered…” In our search for a convincing or logical reason to the question of “why” we often end up believing some myths about Christian life. One of the most popular myths is that Christians will not suffer because they are protected by God. Yes, God does protect us from several tragedies, but God does not promise to insulate our lives from pain. Remember what the psalmist said (Ps 23): Even though I walk through the valley of shadow of death….that means God will let us walk through these valleys, his promise is that he will be with us even/especially during those valleys.
Some Christians beat themselves up too much by believing that their suffering is caused by their own sin or disobedience. It is true that our sin and disobedience cause pain and result into suffering, but that does not mean that all our suffering is caused by our own sin. As part of human race who have rebelled against a loving God, we will have to accept our share of suffering since we live in a fallen world. But our God is good and ready to forgive (Ps 86:5). Oh by the way if God really chooses to punish each of us for all of our sins, none of us would even exist here. Finally some Christians condemn themselves and think that if only they had more faith may be they could have avoided this suffering and pain. Having more faith is a wonderful thing, but that does not prevent you from suffering, in fact there are many people in the Bible who suffered despite great faith, think of all the martyrs who suffered and lost their lives though they had faith. Faith does not prevent us from pain, it helps us to prevail over pain; faith does not eliminate pain, it strengthens us to endure pain without giving in.
Bottom line: Pain is a reality we cannot dodge, we may never understand why we suffer or experience loss and pain, we may not have a chance to see the big picture in our life time. Often the problem is not the reality of pain in itself; it is our limited perception of the big picture and our corrupt idea of good life. The prophet Habakkuk shows the best response to loss, pain and suffering: “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.” (Hab 3:17 &18). Notice the words….though, though, though….Yet I will. May be its time we joined him in saying though the stock market is down, though the economy is bleak, though my investments have disappeared, though my health is not great, though my job is not secure….etc I will rejoice in the Lord.
Having more faith is a wonderful thing, but that does not prevent you from suffering…Faith does not prevent us from pain, it helps us to prevail over pain; faith does not eliminate pain, it strengthens us to endure pain without giving in.
– – Author: Rev. Francis Burgula – –
