The Purpose of Physical Pain
Some people have said that pain is useful because it lets you know that you are alive. I reckon that may be true, but most of us dislike pain because it hurts. We do not want to hurt. Simple. There are a few people who like pain, and some people think that this is because the line between pleasure and pain is a bit fuzzy. The picture below represents ecstasy, but I thought her expression was of agony at first.
Physical discomfort is a prompt warning that something is amiss. Don't be grabbing the coffee pot off the campfire, that will send signals through your nervous system mighty fast! Pain causes violent reactions, such as dropping the hot coffee pot. Something's wrong, deal with it quickly. There are conditions where people do not feel pain, and they have to be exceptionally careful or even have someone watch them because they can be damaged and not know it.
Was the capability of feeling pain present at the beginning of creation? I respectfully disagree with the doctor who wrote the article linked below because I think it was there all along because of its function. Also, the pleasure and pain feedback travel within us using very similar pathways. Once again, the Master Engineer designed us to respond and take action when we're being damaged, as well as to feel pleasurable sensations. Things got cockeyed after the Fall of man, though.
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| The Magdalen in Ecstacy, Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, 1606 |
Was the capability of feeling pain present at the beginning of creation? I respectfully disagree with the doctor who wrote the article linked below because I think it was there all along because of its function. Also, the pleasure and pain feedback travel within us using very similar pathways. Once again, the Master Engineer designed us to respond and take action when we're being damaged, as well as to feel pleasurable sensations. Things got cockeyed after the Fall of man, though.
Ouch! Your daughter snatches her finger back at the first prick of a rose. Eek! Your son jumps back the instant his bare feet touch your sunbaked deck. Our reflex response is a blessing, prompting us to withdraw at the first sign of trouble and preventing worse harm.To finish reading or download the audio version, click on "Is There Anything Good About Pain?"
Pain protects us from bigger problems—not just outside but inside. The pain of an inflamed appendix, for instance, often drives us to seek medical care before the appendix ruptures. As a medical doctor and a Christian, I’ve seen innumerable cases where such pain has helped people in this sin-cursed world.