Here are four ways to deal with pain and suffering in your life.
Comfort Others
If you can use your pain to help others, wouldn’t that be one way to deal with your pain?
I noticed that every time there is suffering in the Bible, it is never wasted.
God uses evil for good (Gen 50:20) and so He can use your pain for the good of others. How so?
First of all, God is the One Who comforts us in our own pain.
The Apostle Paul wrote it is God “who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2nd Cor 1:4), and since “we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too” (2nd Cor 1:5). God comforts you so that you can comfort others.
See Gain in Pain
The old saying, “No pain, no gain,” isn’t just true about the body, it’s also true about the mind. When we are in physical pain, we can often seek treatment for it, but if we’re in mental anguish, it’s not so easy to treat.
I would say run to the Psalms for comfort. King David went through a few years of running for his life trying to escape King Saul. He slept in caves, sweat in the heat, froze at night, all while being deprived of sleep, food, and water.
That’s when he poured out his heart to God, and prayed, “I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears” (Psalm 34:4), and no fears could mean no tears.
Think of these psalms as prayers and then pray them back to God, since even the “poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles” (Psalm 34:6).
Get some Rest
Jesus tells us, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28), which means we come up to Jesus, unload every care, burden, and pain, and only then can Jesus “give you rest.”
Now that you’ve come to Jesus, He says, “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29).
Twice Jesus mentions rest. That’s because carrying all of these burdens around (including pain) is too much work and it wears us out. Come to Jesus, unload it all, take His yoke, and get some rest for your weary soul.
Share it with a Friend
They say that a joy shared is doubled but a grief shared is halved (or cut in half). I think that’s true, because I’ve been on both ends of this spectrum.
The Bible even tells us to “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep” (Romans 12:15), so there is “a time to weep, and a time to laugh” (Eccl 3:4a).
Are you in pain? Do you know someone else who is? Be a friend, because, “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity” (Proverbs 17:17). So is a sister!
If you or someone else you know is in a lot of pain right now, try to seek the God of all comfort.
He will comfort you, but then this same comfort He’s given you, you’re supposed to give to others to help them in their pain.
Try to look at pain as an opportunity to run to God and unload your burdens on Him. Then, seek a friend and be a friend. Double their joys but halve their sorrows.
If you’re in a season of pain and suffering, just remember, your pain won’t last forever!
