Why do we hurt? Why do bad things happen? There is plenty we can talk about with that subject, and in my years of writing about empowerment and forgiveness I’ve heard from lots of people who tell me about the things that have caused them pain. I hate to see people struggle, and very often when I hear someone tell me about their pain I can relate all too well.
But here’s what else I know about my personal pain. God has used it and turned it into something better. Sometimes that means personal growth that has allowed me to see people in a different way. Sometimes it means seeing myself differently. Sometimes it means being able to rise above drama and focus instead on the things that are really important.
The only way to be able to truly rise above pain is to work through it. Not around it. But in working through it you learn things you might have missed before. Here’s one take on the purpose of pain, from a poem in my book My Soul Is From a Different Place and is also included in the book Poiema.
The Purpose of Pain
How do you know
that this pain you feel
is darkness tugging
at your soul?
How do you know
that the hurt
is an attack
from your enemies?
Perhaps the pain
is from angels feverishly
sewing thousands of stitches
deep into your spine.
Each stitch meant
to hold wings
firmly in place
for eternity.
And when you stretch
your arms up above your head
the pain becomes almost unbearable.
Almost.
But you get used to the feeling
and mistakenly believe
it’s because pain
is your legacy in life.
When really your soul
is finally learning to adjust
to the power
of its reach.
And when you stretch
your arms again
as wide as they can go,
you can finally embrace God.
© Cherie Burbach, “The Purpose of Pain,” My Soul Is From a Different Place, 2014
