Summer Sampler: Why I Stopped Hiding My Pain

Keep a stiff upper lip. Grin and bear it. You may be familiar with these idioms to “soldier on” and put a lid on suffering and pain. I certainly am. Recently, I’ve been convicted of how that kept me from glorifying God by showing the reason for – and hope in – my suffering.

I was a “perfect attendance” child. I didn’t even get colds. Then in 1986, at age 23, I woke up one day unable to …