Russell Media - Laurie

My heart is very sad today and my house is empty. You see my parents, my sister and her family came for a visit and they just left to drive back home to the other side of the country. For the last eight days we’ve had twelve people in our home. It was fun…a crazy, crowded type of fun. A week-long slumber party that returned us adults to our childhood.

But now they’re gone and our house is so quiet and empty. I walk into a room with the instinct to step over a mattress, suitcase or toy, but nothing is there. It is all packed up and exaggerates the pain and loneliness I’m feeling.

It’s not fun feeling pain.

I’m reminded of a sign I once read in a race. I was running in my first marathon. We were at mile twenty with a little over six more miles yet to run. My legs were shutting down and my heart was beginning to question my ability to finish. I approached a curve in the road where a lone man stood with a sign that read, "Where there is pain, there is life.”

This quote gave me a surge of energy. The year before race I was healing from a c-section, the year before that, knee surgery to fix a torn ACL. I was experiencing pain but it was a healthy pain that reminded me that I was alive. I was able to move, be active and meet a personal challenge.

Emotional pain is hard. It often paralyzes us and tempts us to mask and fight it with substances, busyness and hardened hearts.

This past week, as the end of my family’s trip drew near, I found myself tempted to distant myself from them emotionally. I began planning out activity for the kids and me to fill our time after they left. I focused on the clutter and tried to lift my spirits at the thought of it being gone. These mental games almost worked until God reminded me of something important…

I love and I am loved and where there is love, there will be pain. However, if I continue to implement tactics designed to mask the pain I risk the opportunity of experiencing true love from another individual.

The pain I’m feeling reminds me that my heart still has the ability to care, to feel. It motivates me to reach out to those I love, to stay connected and tell and show them that I love them. People need to know when they are loved. When we have the confidence of being loved, we’re better able to give it away.

Prayer, time and the endorphins of a good workout do a good job of healing a hurting heart. So, I think I’ll sign off now and spend some time praying, thanking God for my awesome family and maybe take our pups for a long walk, knowing in time the pain will be replaced with joy.

I ask a favor of you today – make sure your loved ones know that you love them. The world needs more confidence in knowing it is loved.

Do you have any insights on lessons God’s taught you through pain, emotional or physical?