PAIN is something that cripples us, and healing doesn’t come so easily. We cry, discern, and give more time for ourselves to heal.
We become angry before we can accept the situation. We blame others, like God, and we start to question if an Almighty truly exists.
This is real. This is happening in our lives. And this is what The Shack is all about.
No, this is not a book or a movie review. But The Shack, in my memory, was the last book I read and appreciated years back. Now, it’s trending on Netflix, and I watched it again.
In the story, a father spiraled into a deep depression when his daughter died which made him question his innermost beliefs. He received a letter urging him to an abandoned shack and this transformed his understanding of his tragedy and changed his life forever.
In real life, pain comes in many faces. The intensity comes in many forms. But if you get to see a movie like The Shack, you will be reminded that you are not all alone in your painful journey.
You have people around you, your family and friends, who are as affected as you, and they are all ready to help you heal. Only if you allow them.
If you have a strong faith in God, you’ll probably question Him at first but, deep inside, you know there’s a reason for your pain. It’s either God is sharpening you to be better or He will give you something better. This idea alone allows your troubled feelings, mind, or heart to rest.
Some good lines in the movie strengthen our faith in God. If you are a believer, you know God is just around and He’ll find ways for you.
“You may not believe it, but I am especially fond of you. I want to heal that wound that’s growing inside you and between us. There’s no easy answer that will take your pain away. No instant fix that’s enduring. Life takes a bit of time and a lot of relationships.”
Have you been in a situation when all you prayed for is for God to take away all the pains and anxieties in your heart? But when you wake up, you still feel the same pain and anxiety and it drives you crazy like how you felt yesterday.
But as you continuously pray and when you allow people, who are God-sent, to help you through the day you’ll realize life is good and beautiful after all, and what’s hurting you will not totally break you.
“When all you see is your pain, you lose sight of Me.”
When we are so hurting and it consumes us, we tend to forget that God and all the people He brings into our lives are there not to just console us but to love us completely.
“The truth will always set you free.”
This line is commonly used in many situations from Bible interpretation to what’s happening in our lives. But if we have the intrinsic desire for truth then it gives us that deep and personal longing to find our purpose in life. By then, we can answer the question that faces us every day, “Who am I?”
“Love always leaves a mark.”
Jesus bore five marks. Two on His hands and two on His feet when the nails fixed Him on the cross. The other was on His side when He received a spear thrust from a Roman centurion. These were all because of His love for us.
Were the pains of Jesus the same as what we feel right now if we are hurting? No. Only Jesus can endure such pain.
When we are hurt, it is because we love. And when we love, it will always leave a mark – good and beautiful memories to make us want to live more.