Constant Pain - Finding God In All Things

So how can we approach suffering from a spiritual standpoint?

Well, we need to free ourselves of some illusions: become "disillusioned' without becoming disenfranchised.

Illusions:

• We are masters of our own destiny
• Fate determines what happens
• A "just" God would never allow suffering of innocent people
• Suffering is deserved punishment
• Suffering ennobles us
• God has forsaken us
• Acceptance = "giving in"
• We have a right to be pain free
• People should always make allowances for our illness
• Disabled = unable
• Invalid = In-valid
• Suffering is unmitigated disaster
• Why should we think about others who are worse off: it diminishes our pain.

The letters of St. Paul contain a number of references to suffering. In the second letter to the Corinthians, he wrote that God comforts and strengthens us in our hardships and trials and that He does this in order for us to help others in turn, so that we can pass on sympathy and understanding, help and comfort to them. 

As it says in the Book of Revelation 21:4

"He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away."

There are numerous promises in the Bible, which relate to the temporary nature of our present life, full of suffering, set against the eternal bliss to which we shall be raised:

"and the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast." 1 Peter 5:10

"These troubles and sufferings of ours are, after all, quite small and won't last very long...the troubles will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever." 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

Yet these are not very comforting to many, to whom the constant pain in this life seems never-ending.

Those of us, however, who hold steadfast to our faith in God, may find it helps to recall Christ's suffering and to remember that our life now is only a shadow of the life to come.

I am reminded of a butterfly struggling to be set from its cocoon. In order to emerge successfully and be transformed from earthbound caterpillar to free-flying beautiful butterfly, it needs the struggle to set free its folded wings and to shake the circulation into them to bring them to life. 

Suffering doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad thing. It can help us grow and mature in ways we can’t even imagine. It can give us realizations about life which otherwise would be difficult to acquire. I’m not suggesting we go out and look for suffering. Rest assured, it will find its way into our life.

Difficulties teach us patience, tolerance, acceptance, and ultimately that we’re not in complete control of our lives. We can do everything perfectly and things might still not go our way.

While undergoing a difficulty one may not be able to fully understand how this is supposed to be beneficial. As Steve Jobs said in his commencement speech, "You can only connect the dots looking back". 

There is a natural tendency for most to reach out to God during difficult times. These opportunities provide the soul, which is stuck in a material body, to again reach out to God and rekindle that relationship. The help will definitely come, but not always in the ways we expect it to. 

Pride becomes humbled. A question was asked in a support group , "What is one thing that Arachnoiditis has taught you?"

The overwhelming response was that it taught them to be humble. It taught some to be thankful even for the very small things in this life. My response was that it did teach me, even to some extent force me to become humble and to be more thankful. It taught me also to put all my faith in God without doubt. It helped me grow in my relationship with God.