from the inside

This morning I read Psalm 102- 
 ". . .My days have been consumed in smoke, and my bones have been scorched like a hearth. My heart has been smitten like grass and has withered away. . .for I have eaten ashes like bread and mingled my drink with weeping. . ."

And there in faded pen in the margin, I read my personal commentary, Much Affliction!

How do we deal with emotional and physical pain and do it together? Sometimes I'm on the outside of a friend's pain but other times, like the voice of Psalm 102, I'm  on the inside. . .

 Joni Eareckson Tada wrote A Place of Healing while in the vice grip of unrelenting pain; from the inside she tells us, "When we are hit hard with pain, our tendency is to go on and on about our pain, problem. . . sometimes we talk way too much about ourselves."
I'm thinking about a wise man's words, "For every one sentence you say to others about your pain, say 10 sentences about your God."
On the other end, a woman in pain may be stoic; she speaks not at all about her pain.
 Granted, some pain is easier to speak about. . .  My tooth is aching versus my heart is broken.
 God appointed my pain-it shapes me. So, I share. . .
 When we suffer, God is working to create in us a deeply affectionate, caring heart; from the inside, don't waste the opportunity to bare the burdens of others, to listen to pray.

 Many years ago a series of painful events changed the course of our life; back then- I thought that John and I were alone on the inside of pain. But now I know that people on the sidelines of our pain were actually on the inside of their own. . .
We hope to meet those dear folks, soon- to talk about it after 25 years.
 And then maybe I'll write a post. . .

We deal with pain together by being devoted to one another in love