Photo courtesty of dlemieux and is licensed under the Creative Commons License.

Like a child who has fallen from his bicycle needs to find a place out of the view of his peers where he can honestly say, “Ouch! That hurt more than I showed in the front of other people,” we too need a private place of honesty.  We need a place where we can sit down, reflect and mourn.  However, we must be careful not to mourn over the past longer than is necessary.  After the funeral, there is always a burial.  The burial separates the survivor from the deceased, and it is as far as we can go.  So you must come to a place of separation and decide to live on. 

In spite of the pain and distaste of adversity, it is impossible not to notice that each adverse event leaves sweet nectar behind, which, in turn, can produce its own rich honey in the character of the survivor. It is this bittersweet honey that allows us to enrich the lives of others through our experiences and testimonies.  There is is absolutely no substitute for the syrupy nectar of human experiences.  It is these experiences that season the future relationships God has in store for us. 

Unfortunately, many people leave their situation bitter and not better.  Be careful to bring in the richness of the experience to the hurting, not the unresolved bitterness.  This kind of bitterness is a sign that the healing process in you is not over and, therefore, is not ready to be shared as a helping tool to other people.  When we have gone through the full cycle of survival, the situations and experiences in our lives will produce no pain, only peace.

~T. D. Jakes