PAIN & COMPASSION
Pain opens the door to compassion.
Cultivated by the Spirit’s compassion, pain invites us to care deeply for one another, grow together, suffering with one another so that none of us is isolated or alone. Pain opens the door to the Spirit’s compassion in us.
Now I’m sure of this: the sufferings we endure now are not even worth comparing to the glory that is coming and will be revealed in us. (Romans 8:18)
No life is Pain-Free
Pain is difficult. It can cause us to withdraw, ignore the phone, cancel invitations, and stop reaching out altogether. Long-endured, it can shrink our world, causing the light to dim, but there is also hope. The tender compassion of the Holy Spirit in can set our pain-sequestered spirits free.
Where pain dismantles, the Spirit’s compassion can flourish.
Pain doesn’t diminish hope. Having suffered loss upon loss, Job uttered these words, “Even if he slays me, I will wait for him with hope.” (Job 13:15)
Like Job, we will suffer as we journey through life on this fallen planet, but pain can become an invitation to walk in compassion.
“We live in a broken, fallen world with broken, fallen people who do broken, fallen things … Multiply that brokenness and fallenness by eight billion people, and you have a massive, incalculable amount of pain and heartache that can have a powerful, humbling effect on us.” (Pastor Ben Young)
No life is pain-free on this side of Heaven. Yet as pain causes us to suffer, it also cultivates the soil for compassion to germinate and flourish. Compassion begins when we “suffer together” (The Latin roots for the word compassion are pati, which means to suffer, and com which means with.).
“Compassion asks us to go where it hurts, to enter the places of pain, to share in brokenness, fear, confusion, and anguish. Yes, compassion challenges us to cry out with those in misery, to mourn with those who are lonely, to weep with those in tears.” (Henri Nouwen)
Our pain is not pointless when our lives are devoted to God. We can rest in the confidence of knowing He is allowing it for a greater purpose (Romans 8:28) and that one day, we will be freed from pain forever (Revelation 21:4).
WASH AWAY OUR PAIN, LORD
Lord, as the winds blow, breathe Your strength into us. As the sun shines, warm our hearts with Your hope. As the birds fly, lift our minds to see Your hand in every atom of creation. As the plants grow, restore our bodies. As the rain falls, wash away our pain. Lord, You are so much more than able. Thank you, and amen!
USE MY SCARS TO TELL A GREATER STORY
Lord God, I want my scars to tell a greater story than my pain. Teach me how to let You into the memories and emotions that continue to keep me stuck so they can tell Your story. In Jesus’ Name, amen.
“Teach me by my own small sufferings to be a better minister and friend to those who suffer greatly.” (from Douglas Kaine McKelvey, Every Moment Holy, Volume 1, A Liturgy for a Sick Day)
Blog Posts
Do You Hear My Prayer
Chronic illness is an extremely heavy burden. It can feel so heavy we can wonder if God truly is He who says He is and if His promises are true. Our hearts wrestle with these huge questions and they sometimes fill us with doubt but we can look to God with certainty that no matter our pain, we are not alone.
Growing in Compassion
I find joy in my brokenness – in my chronic illness, in my disability, in my pain – because it becomes a bridge that connects my story to another person's story. Usually, my cane provides an opportunity to connect with a stranger and show them compassion in a way that I simply could not have done otherwise.
BOOKS WE LOVE
A Letter of Consolation
Henri J.M. Nouwen
This book reflects on the spiritual significance of death and life in this moving meditation dedicated to “all those who suffer the pain that death can bring and who search for new life.” A long letter to Nouwen’s father after the death of his mother. A book to pass on to anyone who is going through a period of grief after loss.
Compassion: A Reflection on the Christian Life Paperback
Henri J.M. Nouwen
Say “no” to a compassion of guilt and failure and “yes” to a compassionate love that pervades our spirit and moves us to action. Discover what it means to be a Christian in a difficult time.
Embodied Hope: A Theological Meditation on Pain and Suffering
Kelly Kapic
Too often the Christian attitude toward suffering is characterized by a detached academic appeal to God’s sovereignty, as if suffering were a game or a math problem. Or maybe we expect that since God is good, everything will just work out all right somehow. But where then is honest lament? Aren’t we shortchanging believers of the riches of the Christian teaching about suffering?
Learning from Henri Nouwen and Vincent van Gogh: A Portrait of the Compassionate Life
Carol A. Berry
This magnificent story of how Henri Nouwen taught about compassion through the life and art of Vincent Van Gough. It will draw you into a deeper appreciation of the beauty surrounding us all.
The Problem with Pain
C.S. Lewis
“If God is good and all-powerful, why does he allow his creatures to suffer pain?” With his signature wealth of compassion and insight, C.S. Lewis offers answers to these crucial questions and shares his hope and wisdom to help heal a world hungering for a true understanding of human nature.
Seasons of Sorrow: The Pain of Loss and the Comfort of God
Tim Challies
An honest look at grief and fears, faith and hope. Combining personal narrative, sound theology, and beautiful writing, this is a book for anyone who has loved and lost. Discover how it is possible to love God more after loss than you loved him before.
Silent Compassion: Finding God in Contemplation
Richard Rohr
Silence is more than the absence of noise. We’re invited into His living presence, wholeness of being, and the peace it brings. This Divine silence can absorb paradoxes, contradictions, and the challenges of life.
Walking with God through Pain and Suffering
Timothy Keller
The question of why God would allow pain and suffering in the world has vexed believers and nonbelievers for millennia. This book shows that there is meaning and reason behind our pain and suffering. The author uses biblical wisdom and personal stories of overcoming adversity. He makes a forceful and ground-breaking case that this essential part of the human experience can be overcome only by understanding our relationship with God.