The fact that someone else’s catastrophe is greater than mine has never made my pain feel better.

I have never overcome my pain by comparing it to someone else’s pain.

I have never overcome my pain by reasoning myself out of it, nor has it helped to seek comfort in some version of theology that gets God off the hook for my pain (and there are plenty of versions to choose from today).

What helps me, is to remember that God is still writing my story and my story is not about avoiding pain, but about finding a way to let God redeem my pain.

-taken from various teaching messages from Jack Deere (https://eveninourdarkness.com/)