After reading the book, The Problem of Pain by C.S Lewis, I was convinced that life has always followed the same predictable pattern, that every living being has experienced pain in different multitude of dimensions, that what makes the difference is how each person process, endure and overcome pain.
The book explores the mystery of pain, and the author sees pain as God’s way of perfecting us, carving away the wrong part, and preparing us for a future ahead. That’s Lewis perception of pain in the most positive way, which is ideally a rational way of thinking about pain.
However, soon after the book was written, Lewis life came crashing. Tragedy struck when his newfound love, an American named Joy Davidman, contracted the terminal cancer and faced her last days on earth. She eventually died. Upon her death, all Lewis theories about pain and all his certainties began to fall apart. He was overwhelmed with grief. Like they say, you can never know the torture of pain till you wear the shoes of pain. Lewis philosophies about pain failed him.
Consequent upon that, his narrative about pain changed in his book, ” A Grief Observed.” It described how his rational faith fell into pieces after the death of his wife and how he was confronted with devastatingly personal paim. He wrote, “Where is God? Go to him when your need is desperate, when all other help is in vain, and what do you find? A door slammed in your face, and a sound of bolting and double bolting on the inside. After that, silence.”
What a horrible way to describe God, a substantiation of the destructive tendency of pain. But soon after, Lewis collapsed faith was resuscitated. He was convinced that the love he shared with Joy had reached its earthly limit and was ready for its heavenly fulfilment, so he yielded to God’s perfect will. He shared the lessons he learnt and revealed that pain has shaped and guided him towards growth in a lot of ways.
Like the Buddhist Proverb states, pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.” We’re all acquainted with suffering and feelings of pain. The piled up debt, marriage and relationship collapse, hard economy, sickness, disappointments, death, and so on. They make the world seem full of cruelty, injustice, caprice, misery, and pain.
There is always that period when we feel forsaken by God, even Jesus Christ, our saviour felt that when he cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Did God forsake him? NO, rather he was brought to the fullness of life through death. God knows our experiences from the inside, He knows the purpose and the plan. He only requires that we trust Him, have faith in Him, and confidently turn to Him in our distress.
Is there any solace in pain? Yes, pain awakens us to a level of reality we wouldn’t recognize without pain. It brings the potential for resilience and strength. It gives an expanded capacity for personal growth. Research shows that some degree of pain is essential to a purposeful and meaningful life. Much as we are not expected to seek pain, we are meant to find essence in pain or in any tragedy that life presents. Victor Osimhen of Super Eagles recently shared how pain and suffering shaped him and gave him the trademark
of fighting that made him victorious and popular today. Yes, pain could be rewarding on the flip side, that’s the dynamics of pain!
To that child and young adult, always remember that moments of pain are inevitable, and your healing and deliverance are in your hands. Those mentors you look up to have scars of pain all over them. They rose through pain and perseverance. Their triumph over the suffering and pain of yesterday is the wealth and fame you envy today.
Pain is momentary. Learn the triggers that make pain surface, prepare your mind ahead, don’t think much of the future, and forget the present, face it in the most positive way.
More importantly, live by the moment, appreciate the now, treasure the little you have, love the people in your circle, make worthy sacrifices, and hope for the better. It is crucial not only to stay alive after the period of pain but to be healthy for the merry days.
Amara Ann Unachukwu
