SHEsaysWITHaSMILE.blogspot.com

Humans responding to suffering and crisis and trauma by (me!) sandra, topps, writeousmom

 inspired to summarize & repeat:   

advantage of age, time, personal experience, 6 decades worth of observations

  -having got it wrong, before i got it write.

the variable is the type of suffering, crisis, trauma

and a variable when it comes to processing/handling, or rather, not handling..

people who respond by abusing drugs; only make matters worse.

people who respond by abusing alcohol, food,  -make matters worse.

people who respond by isolating/retreating  -make matters worse.

even people who respond by seeing counselors [not all.. some]  by re-visiting, re-visiting.. -can unintentionally make matters worse.

but people, 

     -too many people over too many years to itemize

people who respond with prayer   -to the pain taker, way maker

people who invite Jesus in to the epicenter of their pain  -with their anger, unanswerable questions, confusion, pain and suffering

people who mourn do receive comfort; can achieve & experience 'peace beyond human understanding'

  -do not necessarily 'get over' but learn to 'live with..'

people with a PhD level of spiritual education and training know (and apply) this truth:

the most powerful healing response to your individual pain/suffering is to get yourself off your mind and go proactively help someone(s) else; even while you yourself are still suffering.

and people who have transcended relatable suffering will naturally reach out to people; recognizing & empathizing with their raw/shocking state..   and serve as examples that transcendence is possible with time

comfort being payed forward..  received; given/shared...   pain in suffering, but beauty in this pattern. 

****

love.    love is a pre-requisite to any and all healing.   love is a proper response 100% of the time to any/all situations   -be it gratitude or suffering

God is love.

GOD IS LOVE.   & where/how do any of us experience love?  inside yourself.  whether you are receiving; 'feeling loved.' by someone, or you are giving it away..   'loving someone'

either way..  love itself is a 'feeling' INSIDE us, that we interpret/experience..  can identify.

in that way; God is in you..     the greater your love, the greater your expression of God; and all that God is..       love does not exist without God existing.

****

if God is good & loving..  why is there any suffering?   -for some people, suffering makes them unable to believe in God

they do not credit a God for anything..    solar system, earth, oceans, landscape, plant/animal, human life..   love..   relationship between space, sun, air, water, land,  -life.  our planet's ability to host humanity

    - i have come to understand God and love are infinite and unchangeable

-as the presence of the sun does not equal the absence of cold, dark or storms

nor does the presence of God equal the absence of hate, evil, wickedness, suffering etc. 

they co-exist..    their essence does not change despite surrounding circumstances.

-does not change whether you are conscious of their existence or not..  

they stay fixed, while focused attention from human hearts and minds fluctuates between dormant and conscious realization. 

  sun remains the sun remains the sun..   any type of weather, season after season, despite any natural disaster..    sun remains the sun remains the sun..   whether you can see it or not.   whether you know a lot of facts about it or not..   whether you take it for granted; avoid it; worship it; enjoy it..

  God remains God remains God..      Love remains love remains love remains love.

****

and for those who do not believe in God,  -God is impervious to your non-belief, 

your non-belief in no way means there is no God; it only means there is no God to you..   

which brings us back over and over..     free will is free will is free will..     /Deuteronomy 30:19

 i have found, even atheists can conceptualize the 'concept' of a God

that is, even atheists are able to create a vague list; distinguish between living a Godly life, or an unGodly life..  in concept.   -there is an internal knowing that underlies any disagreements tied to subjective values on an imaginary itemized list.. 

****

what is surfacing as a result of the most recent floods in Texas; the deaths..

well, Christians are turning directly to prayer; the power of prayer

some of the secular population are mocking the very idea of prayer..

it is my testimony, life experience, decades worth of observations..

prayer is as important to our internal/spiritual lives as breath is for our outer/physical.

over and over, 

cultivating a relationship with Jesus..   the Bible..   prayer..

while there are no answers for predicting or explaining why/who/what/when/type,  how long, in regard to pain/suffering; physical death

there is a proven answer for responding to it:  pray your truth.. confess your confusion, anger, pain, hurts, anguish, grief, be real and unfiltered..     if it hurts like hell; pray so.

  invite Jesus in to the epicenter..      receive comfort from the Holy Spirit..

love.  truth.   gratitude.  healing.   helping others.    -trust..    faith...   hope..

over and over, the greatest is always love. 

****

hallelujah & amen

posted by SANDRA MICKANEN @ 8:02 AM