Making Room For Pain

[Beautiful]

There once was a woman sick and dying in bed. She said – There are two kinds of people who come into her room. The first kind and by far the majority can not sit still. They cannot stand that she is in pain. They always have to change something. If the window is open – they have to close it. If my hair is on one side they have to fluff it over to the other side. They are also the first to say how good I look that day. That always scares me. She says that must mean I’m going to die any minute. I know how I look. I look good for being this sick? I look god for being this close to death? That first group who can’t sit still with me – they have no room in their heart for my pain because they have no room in their heart for their own pain.

The other group – far fewer – they come in the room and sit there. They don’t have to do anything. I don’t have to protect them. This coming back to the theme – not making the person on the death bed have to protect you from their pain and the only way that’s really going to genuinely happen is to the degree you have already made room in your heart for your pain. If we are not doing work on ourselves that other person is in trouble. They become an object in our mind instead of the subject of our heart.

From Annenberg media learner learner.org/resources/series108.html
Death: A Personal Understanding
Part 4 Deathbed

How do you make room in your heart for pain? Is there an easy answer?

 

[Beautiful]

If compassion is a grace from God then what must one do to be open to receiving this beautiful gift? It rarely seems to be enough to simply see and know the difference between compassion and lack of compassion. Something greater is necessary to move one to loving and compassion.

 

[TOP]

com·pas·sion (kəm-păsh’ən)
n.
Deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it. See synonyms at pity.

Join in the suffering and to have understanding by sharing. When I was sick, only a few nurse’s could understand me, because they had seen death before and with compassion had fought it. Suffering is a lonely thing, but there is relief in the Lord’s passion, because He understands. He experienced it and lived again sending His Spirit to strengthen us during our suffering. Through this Spirit and it’s understanding we come to the passion and know we will live again in Him as we suffer with Him. I don’t know how to convey this. Maybe it is hope we should make room for in our hearts to displace pain. Tim

 

[Coreopisis]

How do you make room in your heart for pain? Is there an easy answer?

Before you can make room in your heart for pain you need to find your heart and open it up.

In order to find your heart you must first be still.
In order to open your heart you must be willing to feel.

I think that you start by forcing yourself to sit there and do nothing while visiting. Don’t try to fix anything, just be there, just be still. Then allow yourself to feel pain and don’t try to make it go away. Just let it happen.

Grave illness is such a lonely journey. For those 5 minutes you visit them don’t let them be alone in that journey.

I hope this helps!
with love,
Sarah