Oh the Pain

Pain is a part of life. In fact it is a very important part of life. No matter how we try to avoid it and try to prevent our friends and family from experiencing pain it is not possible to completely avoid it. We come into this life through the pain of childbirth; we experience pain when we learn to walk; we experience pain as we are teething. Then there are growing pains. Oh do I remember those, I grew six inches in height one summer, growing pains are very real.

Pain is a part of life; in fact pain is actually vital to survival. Pain reminds us to pull back from something that would hurt us like fire or extreme cold. Without the ability to feel pain we would suffer great damage to our bodies such as the diabetic does.

So far I have only touched on physical pain, but we all know that there is the emotional pain as well. The pain of losing a family pet, the pain of our first loved failed. The pain of rejection, the pain of love lost. Again pain is critical to our growth. It is through the experience of pain, though usually unpleasant, that we grow and mature. It is through pain that character is built. Just like when trying to build muscle, “no pain, no gain”, we also gain emotional strength when we experience pain.

So we can choose to avoid pain at any cost, encasing our bodies and souls in a suit of armor not letting anyone or anything in. Not taking any risk and becoming soft and ashen. Or we can buck up and take a hit or two while training for our ultimate purpose and become who God intended us to be.