Resigned to Our Pain
When human beings hurt deeply, we mention our pain when we require moral support or help finding relief. But, when the pain never ends, we typically quit talking about it, unless the situation is dire.
We don’t want to bore everyone with yet another discussion of our health. We don’t want our lives to consist only of our pain. We want to forget the suffering and ponder the beauty of the winter snow, the tones of the symphony, the preciousness of Christ, the gift of a harmonious family, and the joy and sacred blessing of a newly begun year.
Yet, in our silence, we soon become resigned to the belief that nothing will ever change. We come to feel that there is no solution to the unrelenting pain. We give up seeking for answers that never seem to come to fruition. We lose hope.
Recently, I attended a weekend workshop. During that event, I was surprised to discover that my pain made it impossible for me to sit still and concentrate. Since I work at home alone, I can move about and deal with my pain throughout the day. I’m distracting no one. It’s part of my routine, attended to with no thought.
However, when sitting next to other women at a table all day, the fact that I had to constantly shift in my seat, moving about to deal with my body’s aching joints and muscles, caused me to realize that my pain had worsened. No wonder I’d been experiencing wildly fluctuating emotions and weeping.
My doctor agreed. She proposed a non-opioid prescription painkiller, the only kind I would consider. I’d forgotten there were options. For years, I’ve been using my own pain management techniques—physical therapy, exercise, posture, nutrition, positive focus, ancient medicinal oils, and over-the-counter pain relief.
Yet, the pain continued beneath the surface, ever-present. The fact that there were options was like new information. I’d completely forgotten that these tools even existed. In my resignation, I had lost hope. I had given up.
Writer, our readers are often in this same place emotionally and/or spiritually. Ignoring basic needs of the heart, thinking there are no solutions, results in hopelessness.
All of us sometimes feel resigned to our lots, trudging through our own cheerless January, believing it must simply be endured. We feel nothing can be done about our bleak future. We’re sad, lonely, discouraged, and uncertain. We’ve forgotten there are options, possibilities, and solutions.
We’re in need of encouragement. We may have given up completely. If no one ever comes alongside, offering the comfort that is received in Christ Jesus, then we have no comfort at all.
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4 NIV).
This is where our writing comes in. In the hope of encouraging others, write openly and honestly. Share the story of rebirth, awakening to a new life in Christ with a future and a hope. Write about the gradual ups and downs of growth, the blessings, and yet the shortcomings we experience in this transformed life. Write the bones.
When we’re real, our readers can identify. They can find the remedy.
We need to truly see the people around us, to peer into the depths, beyond the external facade, to discern their needs—needs they may have squelched and ignored, thinking there are no answers.
We need to see their hopelessness. When we do, when we’re moved by compassion, we can write from the heart, offering the needed prescription.
Write to the need. It most certainly exists.
Write about the gradual ups and downs of growth, the blessings, and yet the shortcomings we experience in this transformed life. Write the bones. #SeriouslyWrite #Encouragement via @MelindaVInman
Write from the heart, offering the needed prescription. Write to the need. It most certainly exists. #encouragement #ChristianLife #ChronicPain #WritingCommunity #SeriouslyWrite via @MelindaVInman
The Shadows Come
 |
| The Shadows Come |
Sequel to No Longer Alone
(WW1 Based on a True Story)
Germany threatens all of Europe. Millions have died. President Woodrow Wilson makes the declaration that the United States must enter the Great War to rescue our allies. Congress approves. Our story begins. In America’s heartland, everyone hunkers down to provide food for the world and resources for the war effort. A draft is necessary, and all young men must register. One by one, these are called to war. With this threat looming, Prentis and Avery raise the necessary horsepower, cultivate the needed crops, and contribute their labors to the Red Cross.
But crises at home, an insidious busybody, and one after another called up to fight in Europe bring the greatest dangers they’ve ever faced together. Then there’s the influenza pandemic. Will they survive the war abroad and the war being waged at home, threatening their love and their lives? Will their loved ones make it home again?
 |
| Melinda V Inman, Author of Refuge; Fallen; and No Longer Alone |
Connections:
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Melinda-V-Inman/189731601076470
Website: http://melindainman.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MelindaVInman
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/melindavinman/
