The Problem of Pain

C. S. Lewis’s book entitled The Problem of Pain is about the pain we experience on earth. In his life, Lewis had a lot of experience with pain because his mother died while he was a young boy, and later his wife died of cancer. Through all this pain, Lewis sees that his true treasure is waiting for him in heaven: “I remind myself that all these toys were never intended to posses my heart, that my true good is in another world and my only real treasure is Christ.” Our lives on earth will be filled with pain and suffering, but through all of it we must remember that our everlasting treasures are stored up for us in heaven.

It’s very easy for us to trust in God when we are going through difficult times in our lives, but the challenge comes when our lives are rolling smoothly. When are lives are easy and enjoyable, we don’t look towards the kingdom of God. Things are far different, however, when we encounter trials and difficulties. During these times “we regard God as an airman regards his parachute; it’s there for emergencies but he hopes he’ll never have to use it.” An example of this happening was after 9/11. During this time of turmoil, our nation turned to God because it wanted the comfort of knowing that He is watching over it. After things went back to normal, the same people whom we praying to and confiding in God returned to their everyday lives and once again ignored the existence of God.

Lewis brings up this point in his book, “Everyone has noticed how hard it is to turn our thoughts to God when everything is going well with us. We ‘have all we want’ is a terrible saying when ‘all’ does not include God. We find God an interruption.” During the “easy” times of our lives, it’s easy to turn from God because we feel as if we don’t need anything else to make us happy, but when we are suffering, God becomes our lifeline. In our lives, we must be careful not to let this become true of us, but we must know that we need God during all situations of our lives both good and bad.