What Pain Does to Us

Pain humbles the proud. It softens the stubborn. It melts the hard. Silently and relentlessly, it wins battles deep within the lonely soul. The heart alone knows its own sorrow, and not another person can fully share in it. Pain operates alone; it needs no assistance. It communicates its own message whether to statesman or servant, preacher or prodigal, mother or child. By staying, it refuses to be ignored. By hurting, it reduces its victim to profound depths of anguish. And it is at that anguishing point that the sufferer either submits and learns, developing maturity and character; or resists and becomes embittered, swamped by self-pity, smothered by self-will. I have tried and cannot find, either in Scripture or history, a strong-willed individual whom God used greatly until He allowed them to be hurt deeply.

Charles Swindoll, Killing Giants, Pulling Thorns

The Tonic

Unselfish love for others is a tonic to the soul. At this very moment, someone needs you to care for him. Without you, his life may be incomplete. It could be a member of your family; possibly it is your neighbor or the person with whom you work. You see, you really do not have time to indulge in self-pity because of your past failures; already too many are stuck in the mud of self-pity, and they need you to lift them out of despair.  

Larry Kennedy, Down With Anxiety