Pain…is it good or bad?
Pain is such an interesting concept. It’s experienced so uniquely by individuals. No one can feel exactly what you are feeling. And two people can go through the same circumstances and have two totally different experiences.
Our culture, and us as human beings tend to avoid pain. No one naturally likes to be uncomfortable. We may however, choose to endure pain or even seek out certain kinds of pain if there is a purpose behind it.
At first glance it might seem like ‘pain-free’ is an ideal goal to reach towards. But neurological disorders that leave you numb are actually quite dangerous. If you can’t feel when something is hot or sharp or too cold, you can actually be left with physical damage that is often permanent.
Sometimes pain is good because it pushes us to change or seek out solutions. I am actually thankful that the tumor on my spinal cord started causing me pain and keeping me up at night. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have known it was there until too late and would not have gone through the necessary surgery to get it removed.
Pain tells us a lot about ourselves. Do we tend to avoid and ignore it? Do we lash out at others or get angry? Do we feel sad and give up and try to protect ourselves? Do we medicate it? Do we inflict it on ourselves? Do we keep it to ourselves and tell no one, or constantly obsess over it and overshare?
I think pain is part of being human and being alive. You can have pain from inactivity and sitting too much or pain from exercise. Burning muscles and lungs are a form of pain. But I like to tell my clients, that’s the good pain. Because it means you are alive and getting stronger, pushing yourself to grow. Pain that keeps you from moving or doing what you love, that’s the bad pain.
Some pain you don’t choose and can’t control. Someone you love might make choices that leave you devastated, an accident or illness might leave you damaged and with pain you never had before, sometimes just waking up and being over the age of 25 can be painful!
There’s always a choice though. Use the pain to make you more compassionate, to push you to work hard towards solutions and growth and change. Or become bitter, disillusioned, give up, and believe it will never get better.
Whatever pain you are facing today, if you know you aren’t alone, it’s easier to overcome. It’s also incredibly helpful to find purpose in it.
Just like Paul writes in 1 Corinthians,
God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. We have plenty of hard times that come from following the Messiah, but no more so than the good times of his healing comfort—we get a full measure of that, too.
