Sometimes the suffering is not for you but for someone else’s life.
-- Joyce Meyer

Wow, does it hurt. It feels like somebody punched you, slapped you, kicked your butt and left you lying on the cold concrete to breathe through cracked and swollen ribs. All your energy has been snuffed out, your emotions have been drained, your feelings are hurt, and your heart is breaking. And there seems to be no end, no relief, and no apologies.

At the pointed end of your pain’s arrow stands someone you’re connected with in a very real and significant way. Maybe they’re moving in an upward direction, intentionally seeking their goals and dragging you, by the hair strands no less, with them. Maybe the goals they’re seeking are such that cause them to lose parts of themselves AND forsake the other people in their lives. Nonetheless, they must seek and achieve those aspirations in order to receive personal reconciliation and the blessings that are theirs. Because of your inherent connection to them, and because you love them, you must go with them, scalp-ache and all. Sometimes you’re their safety net; at times their hitching post; and, as of late, their dumping ground - all of which have made you feel like you’ve been badly beaten.

But you’re not going through their stuff; you’re going through your own, and it hurts like hell.

If you’re willing and loving, you can see them through their stuff, but only if you’re loving yourself first. You’ve got to take time to preserve your sanity. You’ve got to honor your feelings, protect them from bitterness, give them room to exist, and not shut them off and put them away. In your insufferable moments, you’ve got to surround yourself with friends and prayer warriors who can stand with you, not those who cry, “I told you so.” You’ve got to do the things you love and discover new things about yourself that you can carry with you wherever you go. And, remind yourself often – you’re not doing this until the suffering is over. You’re doing it because suffering exists.

When it’s all said and done - when the goals have been met and exceeded and the clouds break to reveal streams of sunlight – the suffering will not have been is vain. Your rewards will be remarkable.

Sadiqqa © 2007