One evening several years ago, my wife was having severe abdominal pains. She wanted to wait and see if it improved overnight. I insisted on taking her to the emergency room. She was admitted immediately and subsequently underwent surgery to remove a section of her colon due to advanced diverticulitis. We were both reminded that night that we ignore pain to our own peril.
In a recent sermon referring to signs that frequent our summer highways during construction season, our pastor put it this way: “Temporary inconvenience; permanent improvement.” If we pay attention to the signs of pain when they manifest – physically, emotionally, psychologically, spiritually – we can travel the road to healing and restoration. Can pain then actually be a gift?
