All great Religions came from the One God who brought man into being. Each was made for its own culture. Now with the peaking of technology, all men are becoming “one-kind”. Mankind’s teachings can overlap with universal semantics. Words can be used to give meaning to ideas that once were too divergent to embrace. The “Word” is the true communicator of God. Once referred to as only a Christian expression (The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. John 1:14), it now applies to all communications from God to man. If he has eyes let him see, if he has ears let him hear. These Christian expressions are for all men.
With the Christian expansion of God through the Ortho-Text, we see God’s gift of pain in PEMP (Physical, Emotional, and Mental Pain). PEMP, which all men avoid, is a “back-handed” gift from God to get man’s attention and give him the opportunity to turn to God. This gift of God moves man more than any “good” gift God has given to man. Man does not move towards God because of all the blessings and good gifts God gives, it takes PEMP to get man’s attention. Prayer is the answer to find peace and bring man in close proximity to God again. Often this overload of feelings overwhelms the Christian and he can use a little of Zen to understand and lessen his load of suffering by recognizing pain for what it is and turning into it and not running from or avoiding his pain. Turn into this pain and allow, yes, encourage this pain to take hold of you and feel it in its full intensity. If you allow yourself to feel and not try to run from it or avoid it, it will lessen and the intensity will reverse. This is true of any PEMP.
Accept all pain and prepare yourself to accept more if it is forthcoming. Do not try to escape your pain, feel it and let God take over. Let the pain bring you closer to God.