Embracing the Journey Through Pain Why God Allows Hurt and Depression #cslewis#MentalHealthAndFaith

today I invite you to embark on a journey a journey of reflection understanding and perhaps renewal it's a journey many of us face but seldom speak about openly the path through pain hurt and depression at some point in our lives we all feel the weight of suffering for some it may be the burden of loss for others The Sting of loneliness or the shadow of depression that seems to Cloud everything but have you ever wondered why does God allow this why if he is so loving does he permit his people to endure such hardships the

answer to these profound questions is neither simple nor easy but today I want to offer you something more than answers I want to offer you hope inspired by the words and wisdom of one of the greatest Christian thinkers of the 20th century CS Lewis CS Lewis once wrote that God Whispers to us in our Pleasures speaks in our conscience but shouts in our pains it is his megaphone to Rouse a deaf World in these few words Lewis encapsulates a truth that is both comforting and challenging our suffering is not without purpose in fact it may

be the very thing that God uses to draw us closer to him to refine us and to prepare us for something greater the purpose of pain to begin let's consider the purpose of pain one of the hardest truths we must accept is that suffering is a part of life from the moment we are born we enter a world that is filled with both Joy and sorrow yet Lewis reminds us that this is not without meaning in the problem of pain he explains that pain is often God's tool for our spiritual growth much like a surgeon

must sometimes cause discomfort to heal a wound God allows us to experience pain to heal deeper wounds within us wounds that we might not even know exist when we are comfortable we tend to rely on ourselves believing that we have control over our lives but when pain strikes when depression takes hold we are reminded of our limitations it is in these moments of vulnerability that we are most open to hearing God's voice Lewis puts it beautifully pain insists upon being attended to it forces us to stop to reflect and ultimately to seek God in ways

we might not have done otherwise but does this mean God Delights in our suffering absolutely not our God is a loving father one who Grieves with us in our pain yet like any loving parent he sometimes allows us to go through difficult times because he sees the bigger picture he knows that through our trials we can grow stronger more compassionate and more like him think for a moment about the process of refining gold the metal must be subjected to intense heat so that all impurities can be burned away leaving behind only pure gold this Lewis

argued is what God does with our souls through suffering he places Us in the Refiner's Fire not to destroy us but to make us more valuable more pure more like Christ in his book Mere Christianity Lewis writes imagine yourself as a living house God comes in to rebuild that house at first perhaps you can understand what he is doing he is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised but presently he starts knocking the house about in

a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense what on Earth is he up to the explanation is that he is building quite a different house from the one you thought of throwing out a new Wing here putting on an extra floor there running up Towers making Courtyards you thought you were being made into a decent little cottage but he is building a palace he intends to come and live in it himself isn't that a powerful image God is Not content with making you into something small and ordinary he has a

grander vision for your life a vision that might require some demolition some discomfort and yes even pain but take heart because the end result is far greater than anything you could ever imagine God is building you into a palace a dwelling place for his glory let's turn our attention to the topic of depression which affects so many of us for those who suffer from depression the darkness can feel overwhelming it can seem as though there is no way out that the weight is too heavy to Bear but even in these darkest moments we are not

alone CS Lewis in a grief observed shares his own experiences with despair following the death of his beloved wife Joy he describes feeling as though God had slammed the door in his face and bolted it from the inside yet even in the midst of his grief Lewis clung to the belief that God was with him even if he couldn't feel his presence he writes when you are happy so happy that you have no sense of needing him if you remember yourself and turn to him with gratitude and praise you will be or so it feels

welcomed with open arms but go to him when your need is desperate when all other help is 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 but my friends this silence is not a sign that God has abandoned us Lewis continues to wrestle with these feelings ultimately coming to the realization that God's silence is not his absence God is still there holding us even when we cannot see him depression May Cloud our vision but it cannot change the truth

that we are never alone so how do we find meaning in our suffering how do we come to terms with the fact that yes yes God allows hurt and depression but he does so for a reason the key Lewis suggests is to shift our perspective instead of asking why me we should ask what can I learn from this how can this suffering Draw Me Closer To God In the problem of pain Lewis explains that we are not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us we are wondering how painful the best will turn

out to be it's a difficult truth to accept but sometimes God's best for us involves pain yet we can take comfort in knowing that God never wastes our suffering every tear every heartache every dark night of the soul is being used by God for a greater purpose perhaps your suffering is teaching you patience Perhaps it is cultivating compassion in you for others who are hurting Perhaps it is drawing you into a deeper relationship with God one that is not based on what he can do for you but simply on who he is whatever the reason

we can trust that God is using our pain to shape us into the people he created us to be and here my friends is where the hope lies in the promise of redemption CS Lewis reminds us that this world is not our final home we are pilgrims on a journey and while the road may be filled with hardships it is leading us to a place where he will wipe every tear from their eyes there will be no more death or Mourning or crying or pain for the old Order of Things has passed away Lewis believed

deeply in This Promise of Heaven A place where all our suffering will be redeemed in the great divorce he imagines a world where the joys of Heaven are so overwhelming that they make the Pains of Earth seem insignificant in comparison they say of some temporal suffering no future Bliss can make up for it not knowing that heaven once attained will work backwards and turn even that Agony into a glory this is the hope we hold on to that no matter how dark things may seem there is a light that shines brighter God is working all

things together for our good even when we cannot see it and one day we will look back on our pain and see it transformed into something beautiful God's presence in our pain in the meantime know this God is with you in your pain he has not abandoned you he sees your tears he feels your sorrow and he is holding you even when it feels like everything is falling apart as as Lewis wrote when we lose one blessing another is often most unexpectedly given in its place your suffering is not meaningless your depression does not define

you God is using these trials to shape you to refine you and to draw you closer to him and in the end you will emerge stronger more compassionate and more deeply rooted in your faith so my dear friends as you walk through the valleys of hurt and depression take heart you are not walking alone God is with you guiding you shaping you and preparing you for something greater than you can imagine embrace the journey even when it is difficult for it is leading you to a place of deeper Faith Greater Joy and ultimate Redemption remember

the words of CS Lewis there are far far better things ahead than any We Leave Behind let this truth carry you through the storms and may you find peace in knowing that God is at work in your life even in the midst of your suffering thank you