After the Pain...

There's an old song that says "You can't hurry love." If we live long enough however, we soon find a whole lot of other things cannot be hurried if good results are to be achieved. Take grieving for example,we go through the stages in different ways and at different times. BUT the process cannot be hurried. Every loss demands to be recognized, categorized and processed before forward movement can begin again. Grief is neither weakness nor faithlessness. Jesus wept. He expressed grief but did not stop there. Instead he went on to do what he intended all along i.e. he fulfilled the Father's will. Anybody remember the words of Master Quai Chang Cain to his student in the movie Kung Fu? "Embrace the pain, Grasshopper." Little Grasshopper embraced the brazier filled with burning coals and received the imprint of his order. From that moment on, no one ever again had to guess who he was or where he belonged.