Earrings.

Every little girl loves wearing pretty jewelry. They put on 7 or 8 plastic pink necklaces and clip-on heart shaped earrings. A little girl will wear all of that plastic jewelry practically anywhere if mom will let them, regardless of what it looks like.  Girls dream of picking out the jewelry to match their senior prom dress. They pick out the diamond earrings they want for Valentine’s Day from their future husband. They envision the tiny pearl studs they’ll wear on their wedding day. Every little girl begs to get her ears pierced.

Except me.

Maybe I’m crazy. Or maybe I’m terrible at being a girl. But I was completely opposed to getting my ears pierced. I saw no need to shove tiny rocks attached to sterling silver rods through holes in my ears. Don’t get me wrong—I dreamed of wearing pearl earrings as I walked down the aisle to be married just as much as any other girl did, but I thought I’d just rock some nice clip-on’s. I also have a slight fear of needles. I literally make myself sick over shots. I figured having a random lady with 17 body piercings holding a little needle-gun that close to my head was completely out of the question. (Honestly, my fear of needles was definitely what was holding me back…)

Well, one random Wednesday in January, my two best friends and I were hitting up the Outlet Mall. Long story short… I now have two tiny holes in my ears. I wasn’t pressured into it, by any means. I had been telling my momma for years I wanted them pierced, I just never got it done. It didn’t hurt when I got them done. The needle part went smoothly. I didn’t cry/scream/pass out. Now, the after affects… That’s what has killed me. When I lay down, pain. When I wash my hair, pain. When I change clothes, pain.

I chose little square-cut cubic zirconium studs as my starter earrings. I must go 6 whole weeks with these bad boys in my ears. I sleep in them, eat in them, shower in them, and live life in them. I’m sure it’s not a big deal for a 3-year-old or an 8-year-old when they get their ears pierced to “live life” in starter earrings. But when you’re a 20-year-old wimp, life is difficult.  For the next 6 weeks, I have to keep these little diamond look-alikes in my ears at all times so the holes can heal. After 6 weeks, though, I will be home free. The temporary pain will be over, and I will be able to wear whatever precious earrings my little heart desires.  And, most importantly, if the day ever comes when I put on a white dress and marry my beloved—I will now be able to wear classic pearl studs.

Life is so similar to that illustration.

We go through times that are rough, times that hurt, times where we just want to give up. But, if we give into the struggles and take out our “earrings,” the holes will close up and we will never get to see what the initial pain was for. The pain we endure is inflicted upon us for a reason. We must be patient, in order to see the outcome. We must trust the Lord to pull us through the tough times For me, my temporary pain will give me a lifetime of bedazzled ears. Haha, that seems very worldly and insignificant, but it’s the truth. No, my pierced ears have not been the deepest pain I have ever gone through—actually it doesn’t even come anywhere close to the “heart pains” that I’ve suffered from. Just like my ears, after suffering for a few weeks, I grew stronger and healing took place. We cannot see the big picture and don’t understand what the pain is for, but the Lord above knows exactly what the pain is for and how we are going to flourish because of it.

Romans 5:3-5 says it best. “Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”

Our sufferings make us stronger.

Our sufferings cause us to rely completely on Christ.

Our sufferings make us who we are.

You would not be you had you not gone through what you have gone through.

You might be hurting because of a heart break, and you fear you will never find Prince Charming. Or because you lost your job, and you have no idea where to go from here. Or for a reason that hurts too much to even talk about. Pain creates an escape. Pain is, often times, the door the Lord opens for you, and we must choose wisely and take this way out. Even if it seems like a good thing, the Lord has something much better for you. The sorrows and sufferings are God's undercover blessings. We may not see them in the process, but we will surely be blessed in the future because of them. Like Laura Story’s lovely song says, “What if Your blessings come through raindrops? 
What if Your healing comes through tears
? And what if a thousand sleepless nights
 are what it takes to know You’re near
? What if my greatest disappointments
 or the aching of this life
 is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy? 
And what if trials of this life
are Your mercies in disguise?”

Patience, my dear friend. Be patient, and find rest in the Lord and He will bring you through. He is faithful, and will not embarrass you or desert you."No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it." (1 Corinthians 10:13)

This pain that is shooting through my ears at this very moment will be totally worth it in roughly 5 weeks. I know majority of the time you don’t have a “time limit” on your pain, but mercy is right around the corner. So, be strong—Don't take out your earrings! View this time of pain as a way the Lord is helping you to grow, and think of all the beautiful earrings you will get to wear because of it!