Living beyond ourselves

I feel as though we live in a society that makes us be almost desensitize. We often put on a brave face when we're falling apart. We hide our sadness with a fake smile. We feel ashamed to cry in the presence of others. When grieving we feel as though there should be a set time to mourn.  We push through pain without others knowing our struggles. When asked "how are you today?" We reply with a close-ended  statement like "good" or "fine." I challenge you, my friends, to stop going through the motions of life. I challenge you, my friends, to live beyond yourself. To reach out to others and make connections. I challenge you to be on the lookout for hurting people God places in your life. To be brave enough to walk through another's pain with them. To point them to Jesus as a source of healing. To be brave enough to be transparent to share your own hurts; because our pain is meant to help others heal as well. The more you shed God's healing light on your deepest pain, by sharing what you are going through or have went through, the more healing you will find. You see the more we try to hide our hurts and pretend they don't exist, the more we keep that pain in the darkness the longer it will take to heal from. We have to find a balance where we don't let our problems overcome us but where they are overcome by God's healing grace. Spend time in His word. Join a bible study. Surround yourself with godly people, who point you to God's word for healing. Pray and ask God to show you a purpose for the pain. There is true healing to be found when we take the focus off ourselves and serve others. God's word can replace the pain with an everlasting JOY, that no one can ever steal from you again.