Some Quick Thoughts on Pain and Suffering as it Pertains to Some of the Songs on My Heaven Playlist Series

I posted earlier today Part 3 of my series on songs about heaven, but it turned out, as I was listening to them with my colleague and friend Miriam, and her husband, my friend Aaron, that a couple of the songs are not really in the same vein as most of my other approximately 100 songs. She was commenting on the song, "The Christian's Good-Night," which is just so lovely that I added it to my list even though it is not same type of song I otherwise have chosen. I guess you could say I have a couple of 'burial' themed songs in yesterday's post, rather than heaven songs, though they both point to heaven.

Anyway, she was saying the the "The Christian's Good-Night" makes her sad as it espouses a view toward dying and going to heaven that isn't so congenial. In it, the dead are sleeping in death until they are raised again and are separated from their loved ones until then, but it feels, to her, at least, as if they are dying because because they want to be released from the cares, pain, suffering, woes, of this life. How much better if each soul could have a good life here on Earth.

So we talked about this for a while. Obviously, I completely agree with her and I certainly would never want anyone to think that I am endeavoring to project a kind of theology that proclaims that I want to die to escape this life--oh sure, I whine and whinge about not being able to sleep, and sometimes pain and suffering myself, but that is not the overriding theme of my life and certainly not my theology and faith.

As I've said in other blog posts, I believe THIS life is life God has given us to be becoming more like him, and death is just a transition to the reign of God which involves Earth and all creation as well. However, we both know that some people are in such a state that they can only wish for a release from this life. Maybe the pain and suffering, torment, whatever, is just overwhelming or they do not have the ability, whether mental, psychological, or whatever to overcome this. It is interesting to note that there have been hosts of folks who have had incredibly difficult lives, emigrants, people with disabilities, victims of torture and genocide, and so forth, who have led incredibly joyous lives, bringing hope to those around them in the same situation and in others too. It is a mystery what gives each of us the power or not to rise above such things, but those who cannot should never be disparaged in any way, because we simply cannot know the reasons why they are hopeless and cannot find joy in life.

I can only hope that I continue to find great joy in my life, as I do, to the end. The endless, or seemingly endless, round of clinical trials (as I write this, I know I am probably going off the drug trial I've been on for 24 weeks because it just doesn't seem to be doing a darn thing for me, though it has helped others and is generally being successful in trial) gets to be old and dispiriting. It's clearly way more happy-making if the trial works and one feels better and health improves! But, that is not always to be. If there are no trials left, who knows how debilitating that will be? Anyway, the other song in yesterday's playlist of the 'burial' type projects much more clearly the idea that the dead person wants to leave this life, saying such things as "I'm so weary, so way-worn, why would you retard the peace I seek in the old churchyard," and "Why weep for me, for I'm anxious to go." We should be doing all we can to alleviate the suffering of folks in this life so they do not need to feel this anxiety and desperate peace-seeking. For myself, yes, sometimes I'm "so weary, so way-worn," but I don't ever feel anxious to leave this life God has given me and hope that I can use my life to make others feel hope.