“I could’ve missed the pain but I’d have had to miss the dance.” - Garth Brooks

    Was thinking abt what are called archetypal sayings... sayings that people resonate with and don’t even know exactly why... but they do. 

    What Garth said strikes the right cord because we all know that pain deepens us, it makes us stronger, better. 

    None of us want it, unless we’re sick. 

    But we all know it’s coming. I have a friend whose lifelong wife is suffering with a life taking disease. As they suffer he encouraged his children, “I know this is tough. And I know you want a break. But we don’t get a break. A break is the end. And we don’t want the end. This is as good as it gets. Savor it, all of it. Because when we get relief, she’s gone. And who wants that?!”

    Garth tapped into that. 

    But it’s deeper than that. The archetypal human is Jesus. He suffered the pain so He could have the dance. Here’s how it looked back then: 

“Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross...” -Heb. 12:2