Pain is inevitable. We are all going to experience it in our lifetimes. There is a lesson in the pain, but most of us want to rush through it or escape it altogether. By doing so, we miss the lesson. When we experience pain and trials, working through them leads us to personal growth and, oftentimes, something we were not expecting.
Take sandpaper, for instance. It is an abrasive material that is used for scraping things to make them smoother. When you rub it against your skin, it hurts. It feels like a rough scratching. But when applied to furniture, it removes imperfections. It scrapes the item and smooths the surface.
Life is like sandpaper. Circumstances and trials hit you hard and cause you pain. It can be overwhelming, and you may feel like you cannot catch a break or catch your breath before another trial hits you. Scrape, scrape. Every life event that hurts is creating something in you that you may not see just yet. It is smoothing out flaws. It is building character. It is sloughing off layers of negative thoughts and emotions. And every time life applies pressure, you have the choice to give in to it and learn from it or resist it. Many people do not know what they are made of until they are faced with a challenge.
But pain hurts, and who wants to be okay with hurting? Here’s how you pain benefits you:
- Painful circumstances can make you smarter. Any time you are faced with having to figure your way out of a situation, it challenges you to expand your thinking.
- Hard times can make you more empathetic. When you walk through hard times, it makes it easier to show compassion toward others who are going through the same thing.
- Suffering can make you stronger. When you make it out of a difficult time, not only have you gained knowledge and experience, but you have more confidence and feel mentally and emotionally stronger.
Without hardship, you may never discover what you are made of. Without suffering, can you ever learn to appreciate joy? When you endure pain, you come out on the other side with insight and experience you would not have had otherwise. You are better off for having gone through the painful situation, even if it doesn’t feel like it in the moment.
Back to the sandpaper and furniture for a minute. If left unsanded, furniture that is old or has chipping paint will have an uneven surface that may be considered unsightly. It may lack character. This is true of humans, too. But when pressure is applied, layers are stripped away, and what you are left with is a beautiful piece that is smoothed out, strong, and ready for whatever else life hands them.
Don’t get lost in your pain. Don’t give into it. Know that it serves a purpose. Grow through what you are going through. Know that the friction is smoothing out the rough spots and turning you into a beautiful work of art.
