Pain

Elizabeth Mittelstaedt is the editor of Lydia, the largest Christian magazine in Europe, published in three languages—German, Romanian, and Hungarian. She and her husband, Ditmar, live near Frankfurt, Germany. In Today’s Christian Woman, Elizabeth writes:

Ten years ago, I spent five hours in a dentist’s chair for what was supposed to be a routine dental procedure and was left with a severely damaged nerve in my jaw. As a result, shooting pain—worse than a severe toothache—pulsated constantly on the right side of my face.

To rid myself of the excruciating pain, I traveled from one doctor to another for six months—to no avail. Nobody was able to prescribe something to ease my torment and despair.

Finally, a doctor at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota told me, “Mrs. Mittelstaedt, there’s nothing more that can be done to repair the damage or relieve your pain. You’ll have to live with it.”

When I returned home to Germany with this news, I felt discouraged and deeply depressed. Medical records show that many people who suffer with the same problem resort to suicide. I, too, felt death was the only escape, but as a Christian, I couldn’t believe that was God’s will for me.

But the constant pain took its toll. I felt hopeless, with nothing left to hang on to. One day, during my morning walk, I crossed a small bridge near Frankfurt, looked down at the flowing river below, and heard a voice say to me, “Why don’t you just jump?” But when I looked down at the water, I realized it was too shallow to drown in. Then the voice said, “Don’t worry. It’s stony down there. You’ll hit your head and die anyway.”

At that moment, Matthew 4:5-7 came to my mind. I recalled how the devil had unsuccessfully tempted Jesus to jump from the highest point of the temple. So I said, “No, I am not going to jump. I am going to trust God.”

I began telling God what I was most afraid of—living in pain. Then I remembered that Jesus says we shouldn’t worry about tomorrow—that he gives us strength for one day. I thought, Somehow, I’ll make it through the day.

As I looked out over our town and saw the beautiful steepled fairy-tale homes with flower-filled window boxes, white picket fences, and clean-swept sidewalks, I realized that behind this perfect facade were thousands of Europeans struggling with the aftermath of two World Wars—broken marriages, depression, guilt, loneliness, and crushed hopes. I felt the Lord tell me, “Elizabeth, these women are suffering like you are today, and they want to give up. But their pain is different—it’s emotional.”

I no longer felt so alone in my pain. And suddenly I was filled with a desire to encourage those women. That morning, the vision for a Christian woman’s magazine in Europe was born.

Almost a decade has passed since that day by the bridge. Today, Lydia is printed in three languages and reaches about one million readers. Its message is simple—hope and encouragement can be found through faith in Christ and his Word. When I receive letters from readers who say, “I didn’t abort my baby, and I’m naming her Lydia after the magazine,” or “Thank you—this magazine is my only friend,” my heart is thrilled. It’s been so healing for me.

Pain is still my companion—but it’s no longer as overwhelming as it once was. When I searched God’s Word for encouragement and comfort, I came upon Psalm 34:19: “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all” (KJV). The words to the left of the comma describe my circumstances—and the words to the right give me real hope for the future. But I’ve learned that when we hang on to the comma in the middle—wait in faith on God’s promise and offer our pain to him—it’s never wasted.

750 Engaging Illustrations.