There’s just so much going on in the world rn. It’s getting a bit much and a lot of people would be scared here.
It’s like pain is inevitable.
There’s just so much pain everywhere. As in, it’s enough. It’s enough. Ahh ahh. Relaxxxx. Relaxxxxx. (As you can see, I’ve been on TikTok a bit too much).
To add some sort of structure to this blog, let’s start with a definition. Pain is something that we all experience and feel. According to the International Association for the Study of Pain (ISAP), it’s described as ‘an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage’. You can also experience pain mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
Pain is relative
Pain is also relative.
When you’re going through something difficult, it can be helpful sometimes to put things into perspective. However, you can end up comparing your situation to someone else’s and think that they are worse off than you are. You can look at someone and think if they got through all of that, and they’re still standing today, then surely I can get through my situation as well.
But by doing this, you could downplay your situation and not take it as seriously. Yes, you can look at another person and admire their bravery, courage, and resilience. However, you may then feel that your situation doesn’t even compare. You may even think that you can’t complain about your situation because it’s nothing compared to theirs. So you tell yourself to just snap out of it and get on with life.
, please just calm down and stop comparing yourself and your pain to someone else’s.
Yes, pain is inevitable and we all experience it at one point or another, but it’s also relative.
Pain can be hidden
You can’t escape pain, no matter how hard you try.
It’s literally in our faces all the time. You turn on the news and it’s there. You go outside your house and it’s there.
Sometimes we don’t even recognise it and we’re unable to see the pain behind a smile, the pain behind a laugh.
The pain behind that uncomfortable look, the pain behind the rudeness, the loudness, the jokes, the silence.
You can have an injury that’s not visible, but it can still hurt.
Pain is inevitable and just because you can’t see it, it doesn’t mean it’s not there.
Wounded soldiers
I once heard Victoria Orenze say that a lot of us are injured soldiers.
Is an injured soldier fit for battle?
If an injured soldier ignores their injury and acts like everything is fine, how will they get better? How can they be truly effective on the battlefield?
How can you expect God to use you if you don’t acknowledge that you need Him and you need help?
Forgetting about past pain
I’ve said countless times that pain is inevitable, but it’s like we still don’t learn from it.
I feel like when someone prominent dies or a mad incident happens, the world lowkey momentarily stops for a second.
The details surrounding the incident fill the news and your timeline. Everyone comes together and we see all these posts about loving people, giving people their flowers, how short life is and so on. This may give people that push and make them determined to finally pursue that dream they have, reach out to long-lost friends, or try to become a better person.
Not a short while later, the momentum disappears and everything appears to be back to normal.
But for some, life isn’t normal anymore, given their painful experience.
For some, their world has still stopped while everyone else is still operating normally.
It’s like a cycle.
Something bad happens, we come together, then we forget until something bad happens again.
But it’s hard for some people to forget.
It’s hard to forget when a family member is no longer there.
It’s hard to forget when you’re still in physical pain.
It’s hard to forget when your life has literally changed.
Hope during the pain
Pain may be inevitable, but it will not last forever (that is, if you go to heaven).
This life is painful and sad and just rubbish sometimes. Many may ask, where is God in all of this? God is there in everything, in both the good times and bad. He is an ever-present help in times of trouble (Psalm 46:1).
During times like these, I have no choice but to stand on scripture as it gives me hope.
I know that in any and every situation God loves me and he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love and he relents from sending calamity (Joel 2:13). I really have to delve in, unpack and meditate on scriptures like these and pray that God will help us get through whatever painful situation we find ourselves in.
Love xxx
Resources
Song
We Have Hope (feat. Joe L Barnes, Jonathan Traylor & Lizzie Morgan) | TRIBL | Maverick City Music
