Suffering exists for the good of man.
2020 has been an extraordinarily awful year. I’m certain I don’t have to go into great detail, but with disease, riots, and unjust killings in mind, I’d like to quickly expound on the embracement of suffering, mentioned in The Theory of Red Teaming - A Call to Action. The existence of suffering is often used to question the existence of God. It is probably the best logical argument one can make. Why would a god that is, “good,” permit such a thing? Life is filled with tragedy and with what can be perceived as senseless suffering. Illness, terrorism, war, poverty, and the simple fact that at some point we will all die makes it exceedingly difficult to think otherwise. Now, I say this not to make a religious argument, but I would like to point out one simple fact. God does not promise you a life free of pain.
Pain and suffering will come knocking at your door when you least expect it. If it hasn’t yet, then just wait. If you are not going through it now, I am sure you know someone that is. Often, when it finds us, we’re unprepared for it. Suffering imminently reminds us of the imperfections of this world. However, there is a peculiar thing that happens that often goes unnoticed. Something good is also brought forth. You see, people make the mistake of isolating suffering. They box themselves into it and focus on the pain. But, if you closely examine the ripples of suffering, you will realize that it does not have a determined end. Suffering is something with which we get to choose what to do with it. Suffering compels a choice.
It is, in fact, human beings that are what gives things sense and reason. As my father-in-law slowly succumbs to Lewy Body Dementia, early in his years, the experience for his wife and children has been painful, fatiguing, and emotionally despairing. While he wasn’t particularly close with his children, I have watched each of them come to terms with old wounds. They have come to reconcile, and in some respects forgive their father. Each of them has made a concerted effort to be home and to help care for him. I have witnessed his wife, with firm resolve, put her husband before herself in all things. And, while many tears have been shed, I consider this to be a moment of glory for this family. The siblings have grown closer together than they ever have been, and they have come to know their parents in ways they never did before. They have grown personally, emotionally, and spiritually. And, this ordeal has grounded in them the importance of faith, love and family.
In the moment, yes, suffering is awful. But, what is good doesn’t have to, “feel,” good. Understand this. Suffering is a transformative force. It serves to provide us with an opportunity to change the world. The sense in suffering comes in what we choose to do with it. In nature, is this not what we see? Consider the many forest fires that have ravaged our country over the last twenty years. All we see on the news is the devastation. But, thanks to evolution, plants and animals in fire prone areas often rebound vibrantly. Grasslands rapidly regenerate providing food and easy pickings for local wildlife. These fires, while devastating, also allow for new long term life. Evolution and adaptation are the outgrowth of affliction and destruction.
To understand and see the good in suffering, you must widen your scope. The danger of linear thinking is always the starting point. Anything worth it’s salt requires sacrifice. Be it physical fitness or a proper education, it all requires sacrifice. No successful business was ever built without someone suffering for it. We bargain with the present to attain something in the future. While this is voluntary suffering, the same rules apply to involuntary suffering. Something good can and will be attained if you look for it. Understand that suffering invariably makes the world a better place. So, do not expect to live your life in a pain moratorium. Summon your grit, find your steel, and bleed willingly. To create a world where there is no suffering is to create a world that is doomed to die.
“I did not find the front-line trenches or the C.C.S. [Casualty Clearing Station] more full than any other place of hatred, selfishness, rebellion, and dishonesty. I have seen great beauty of spirit in some who were greater sufferers. I have seen men, for the most part, grow better not worse with advancing years, and I have seen the last illness produce treasures of fortitude and meekness from most unpromising subjects.”
- C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain