Episode #16: Where Joy Hides
“I believe if God is the ultimate architect, builder, master carpenter, that in his blueprints, in his infinite wisdom, he chose to bury a unique joy or peace or clarity deep inside your pain, loss and suffering, specific to you, specific for you. But it has to be pursued.”
“To dig for the elusive gift of joy amongst the rubble of loss.”
On the longest night of the year (winter solstice), Jon delivered a message that, shall we say, carried a bit of light for those that find themselves in the dark. There's a natural instinct to avoid pain, to push through difficult emotions, or to distract ourselves from grief. But what if there's actually value in deliberately engaging with our pain? What if touching the pain—rather than avoiding it—could become a source of strength? When we allow ourselves to feel the full weight of our loss, something profound happens.
Pain keeps us humble and grounded. It gives us perspective on what truly matters and clarity about how we should spend our time and with whom. Rather than making us weaker, touching our pain creates a reference point—a marker we can look back to and see how many times we've gotten back up.
There is a gift hidden in the pain…for those willing to pursue it.
“The best way I can say it is, I wish my wife could meet this version of me now. I’m drastically different for the better.”
