Pain

"Pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks to us in our consciences, but shouts in our pain. It's His megaphone towards a deaf world", C.S.Lewis

Leprosy victims die ultimately not because of their leprosy--but because their nerve endings are no longer responsive to pain; as a result, a leper may step on glass, get an infection and never know it. My twin brother has diabetes and resultant neuropathy, resulting in no sensation in his left foot. A deep foot wound, of which he was unaware, resulted in a year-long infection and ultimate amputation of a toe. He could not feel the pain that would have signaled trouble.

We are experiencing pain as a nation. It is a good thing because it signals we must do something, or the resultant infection could spread disastrously and result in our decay and, ultimately, our demise.

*We are in pain because we have overspent on self-indulgent pursuits and are now reaping the whirlwind.

*We are in pain because we ignored an inflationary bubble that burst--just as we knew it would--and inundated us with reality.

*We are in pain because our moral license has produced a generation of dishonest politicians, greedy financiers and compromised public servants.

*We are in pain because the fragile peace held taut by dictators and despots is now being challenged and overturned with more frightening alternatives.

*We are in pain because we are bankrupt and the cost of financial restructure is more than we are willing to pay.

*We are in pain because we have mistaken material prosperity for personal happiness, and the benefits are as fleeting as yesterday's property values.

*We are in pain because we have foolishly exchanged our faith in God and our commitment to an meaningful work ethic for the alluring gods of governmental provision and subsidized pensions.

*We are in pain because we have mistaken the difference between "equalitarian" and egalitarian, and the lack of distinction has led to unbridled entitlements.

*We are in pain because we have allowed marriage--the basic unit of our societal structure--to be redefined by a bellicose minority, leaving in our trail an uncertain confused generation.

*We are in pain because we have ignored the dissonant shouts for substantive change and have substituted the temporary fix of cosmetic anesthetics.

We can walk away like the unsuspecting leper, and proceed as if there is no cause for pain...or we can heed the screaming pain of a body under viral attack, and act courageously, no matter what the cost. It might be ewcruciating...but it could be a matter of life or death.