Welcome my friends to season 3 of the Determined to Dance podcast. My prayer is that you’ll be encouraged to persevere daily in our chaotic world. Today’s episode, The Problem of Pain, focuses on how hurting can move us closer to or farther away from God.

Show Notes: The Problem of Pain

Pain. It comes in many forms: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. I’ve dealt with it all at one time or another and I’m sure you have also. Pain can be a problem because it has a tendency to either push us closer to God or pull us far away from our heavenly Father. There is no neutral “resting place” when you are experiencing pain.

Dealing with the hurt is like being in a dark room alone. Others could be in there with you but no one can know exactly where you are. Take a broken leg. Five people could break their tibia and each would experience different levels of physical pain from the break, mental pain from dealing with loss of motion and stability, emotional pain from lost activities and possibly job-related issues, and some could even note spiritual pain when dealing with the question of “why did this happen to me?”

Pain is experienced by everyone but no one can truly understand what you are personally going through. Except for God.  Jeff Walling says: “…one of life’s really big questions…comes in various forms, but the bottom line is always the same: “Will you catch me?” “Are you gonna walk out when the going gets rough?” “Will you love me tomorrow?” “Can I really trust you?” If anyone knew how to answer these queries, it was the psalmist. He understood the fears of little boys and big men who look down the dark passages of life and pray, “Father, will you see me through?” He understood the challenge of dancing in the dark, the struggle of trusting and obeying when things look bleak.”

Psalm 34:18 is an example: “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.” NLT

Isaiah 41:10 is one of those verses that helps me through painful times. “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ NKJV

The Message Bible says it this way: “Don’t panic. I’m with you. There’s no need to fear for I’m your God. I’ll give you strength. I’ll help you. I’ll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.”

When I’m hurting, I need a firm grip. Strength. And the peace that keeps me from panicking. Don’t you?

When pain attacks, how can we make sure we turn in the right direction, toward our heavenly Father?

Take all your questions and concerns to God. He is big enough to hear all you have to say. You can be honest with the Father.
Take all your anger, sadness, and remorse to God. He is compassionate enough to bring comfort.
After you’ve poured your heart to Him, listen. Take time to hear the directions He may give you in pointing to friends, remedies, and advice to help you in this distressful time.

Back in December, I woke one morning with ringing in my ears. The doctor gave me antibiotics, figuring it was a sinus or ear infection issue. It didn’t go away. Over the next months, I read everything about this annoyance that gave me mental and emotional pain. Many tests of my hearing (it is excellent) and an MRI of my head showed nothing out of sorts and there has been no explanation of why I have this problem. It is a day-by-day walk as I deal with the “cicada” noise in my head, sometimes soft and often very loud. My mind is slowly learning to tune it out for much of the time and I am grateful. I pray for healing and the ability to deal with the emotional stress that bothers me, especially at bedtime.

For now, when I’m struggling most, I go through the three steps above. I want to cry out “Why me?” but we live in a fallen world and there will be pain of all types until we finally make it home. Dancing in the dark, and deciding to trust God is the only decision that brin...