The Blessing of Pain


Shower
Bath
Open a tea bag
Cook
Eat
Hold a glass of water
Make coffee
Hold a cup of coffee
Pick up a tea kettle
Wash or dry my hair
Write
Use my computer
Text
Drive
Put on clothes
Take off clothes
Put on shoes
Take off shoes
Clean my home
Excercise
Grocery Shop
Put on makeup
Open any kind of can or jar
Sleep in a bed
Sleep more than 2 hours at a time
Scratch my back
Give a hug
Wear contacts
Garden
Work
And a few other things I could no longer do for months.

I broke my humerous bone in 4 places. My orthopedic doctor told me on a scale of 1-10 my break was a 10. My physician recommended natural healing to avoid risk of nerve damage or infection.

The pain was so intense even with strong pain medication every 4 hours. After 3 weeks I decided to stop the prescription pain medication due to fear of addiction. For a few days it felt like I had a horrible virus. Later I learned this was due to stopping the pain meds cold turkey.

Pain changed me. It was humbling to be dependent on my husband and others for every thing. It was difficult to feel pain 24/7. It felt strange to stay home, not work and wear pajamas all the time. The situation I found myself in was shocking. I have always worked, been busy and independent. One of my greatest joys is cooking for my boys. I could no longer do this. They came to visit in July and we had to purchase food. This may seem small to some but I felt sorrow.

What I could do was pray and read my Bible. It was during this time that I began to see the benefits of my accident. Today I am so much better. Though I still have pain, with physical therapy my range of motion has improved tremendously. Looking back I see more clearly how my pain was a blessing.
Initially my reaction to this accident was shock and depression for several days. The pain was such a high level that I longed for heaven. Not being able to sleep made it worse. After the shock wore off my heart shifted in three ways. I began to pray:

#1 God you are great. You are sovereign and worthy of praise. I don’t understand why this happened but I worship you.

#2 Teach me more about you, myself and others through this journey.

#3 I don’t know how but I ask that this would bring glory to your name.

After 5 months I can say that God used my pain to:

Get my attention
Humble me
Guide and direct me
Draw me closer
Change my heart
Grow my prayer life

In the process I have met so many others with worse injuries…

A 35 year old mom with two broken amrs.
A woman with daily severe vertigo for 2 years.
A 40 year old woman with such severe nerve damage and infection from surgery that she was forced to have her arm amputated.
A professional violinist who could no longer play after breaking her arm and nerve damage from surgery.

Pain is a blessing that takes us to points of desperation and need, to pivotal moments of prayer and rescue/restoration and resurrection, that we would never experience if left to our own comfortable routines, Pain is meant to be a blessing, and it is through pain that we grow and develop into who God has created us to be. Becoming aware of pain is the first step towards healing and wholeness. Ecclesiastes 7:2-3 says that sorrow is better than laughter, for by the sadness of he countenance the heart is made better.

So whether our pain is physical, emotional, mental or spiritual, God can use it for good. The key is for us to focus on the Lord and not ourselves.