Pain -- a Reprise

C.S. Lewis believed that the issue of pain warranted an entire book--The Problem of Pain. He was writing into the world of Great Britain early in World War II, when his countrymen must have felt like all was not right with the world. Lewis makes the point in Chapter Six that pain (or tribulation) is God's intended vehicle of reminding us that "all these toys [goods and experiences] were never intended to possess my heart, that my true good is in another world, and that my only real treasure is Christ." Lewis further opines that because it is in the human nature to run back to our "toys", God must allow tribulations to continue until "God either sees us remade or sees that our remaking is now hopeless."

Pain/tribulation can be a useful tool, but only if I embrace it properly. My natural tendency is to seek to reduce pain/tribulation. I generally don't go looking for ways to increase my pain (despite what one of my sisters says about my running). I do not believe that God wants me to look for ways to be in more pain, but I do believe that He is best served when I embrace the pain as a tool for my education and ultimate betterment.

After all, if it is pain that best serves to remind me that this life is not all that there is and that my best existence is that which is and will be beyond the here and now, then pain is my friend--and I should not run from my friends.

Sometimes the pain is physical. The pain I feel when I run is a good pain of exertion, but also serves to remind me that my current physical body has an expiration date. I can choose to be upset that I hurt, or I can be thankful that better things are ahead. Sometimes the pain is emotional. At those times I can choose to be angry with who or what is causing the pain, or I can choose to recall the promise of a future existence where there is not more sorrow and no more mourning. Sometimes the pain is spiritual. When that is the case I can choose to despair over the low moral and spiritual state of our country, or I can choose to be encouraged that one day God will reign visibly and without limitations of time or space.

So much comes down to choosing.

May it be said that I chose wisely.

Press on,
-Ken