IS PAIN AND SUFFERING ALWAYS BAD?

God looked over all he had made and saw that it was very good.

Genesis 1:31

Why would a good God allow good people to suffer? It is one of the oldest questions people have had throughout the generations. It occurred to me the other day that it has to be one of three reasons or "doors." 1. God is not really good. 2. People are not really good. 3. There is the possibility that something good could can come even from suffering.

If you have never experienced the goodness of God, then you might choose "door number one." If you believe that people are fundamentally bad and need to be punished, you might choose "door number two." If you are like me and believe that God is good and people are basically good, but you don't really know why good people suffer, then you might pick "door number three" and explore the fact that something good can come even from suffering.

1. I believe that some people suffer because of some of their own poor choices over a long period of time, as in the case of ruining their own health though smoking and drug abuse or going through great financial losses after much wasteful spending.

2. I believe that sometimes pain lets us know that what we are doing is not working. Pain can capture our attention and lets us know that change is necessary as in the case of touching a hot stove, sitting in the sun too long without sunscreen or engaging in risky sexual practices. Embracing that resulting pain can actually lead us to personal growth and transformation. Yes, pain can be a motivator for change, and that with the right attitude and mindset, we can transform our lives in meaningful ways. In the case of poor relationships choices, pain can signal that it is time to move on and learn new behaviors. Unfortunately, many of us sabotage this possibility by denying, numbing or backing away from such pain.

3. Pain gives us opportunities to be heroic. Heroic actions often arise from a desire to alleviate other's suffering because of what we have learned about our own pain. Our obvious efforts at overcoming challenges can inspire others to act courageously.

4. Pain often reveals our inner strength and resilience. Anyone can give up, it's the easiest thing in the world to do, but to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that's true strength.

5. Feeling pain and going through difficult experiences can actually foster empathy and compassion for others and motivate us to advocate for change and justice.

6. Pain and loss helps us wake up and realize how much good we had to lose. The more loss we feel, the more grateful we should be for whatever it was we had to lose. It means we actually had something worth grieving for! The ones we should feel sorry for, are the ones who go through life without ever knowing about grief!"