Defenseless against suffering

Hello everyone and boy do I mean everyone. I suppose the notion of doing this is a little strange to me. This is my first blog, and the thought of posting some of my meandering meditations has my mind filled with visions of everyone in the world gazing down upon me even as I type this. Just back off! Just kidding. I know that is just plain silly. Anyhoo. This post will be dedicated to touching on some of the reasons that I chose this particular name for my first blog. It does sound a bit sad and dark doesn't it. However, this will not be the tone of this blog.


The short version is that the name came from a quote I jotted down, "We are never so defenseless against suffering as when we love." Sigmund Freud said it so you know it has to be true (sarcasm alert-for those of you who don't know me). There are so many angles of truth to this statement that it is mind boggling. One of the angles is probably the one Ziggy was going for when he made the statement back in the day. When you open yourself up and become intimate with another person, your intimacy level increases in direct proportion to the level that your defenses decrease. Therefore, if the other person chooses to not consider your heart the treasure that you hope they will, suffering ensues.


Another angle is that when you are younger, single, broke, and bee bopping through life, you do not have a whole lot to lose. However, as you begin to create life long relationships, achieve life long dreams, and you begin to lay your roots, you start to realize that your huge blessings are always fragile because this life is a temporary place, and this causes you to suffer because you now care so deeply about so many people and things.


However, this leads me to a third angle that will be the last one that I address. If you are not familiar with me personally, let me say that I am a believer in Jesus Christ. When I say that I am a believer in Jesus Christ, I primarily am referring to my belief that He is the Savior of the world and the Son of God. I believe He is alive right now in heaven with God the Father, and I am consistently trying to give Him His rightful place as the center of my solar system by revolving around Him (thank the Lord for His gravitational pull!). Anyways, one of the ways I do this is through reading and studying the Bible. The "fellowship of His sufferings" is mentioned many times. I believe this is referring to growing closer in intimacy with Jesus through our suffering. This is not to be confused with some masochistic perversion or sadistic perversion on the part of God. I believe this is referring to suffering with a purpose. Two examples of suffering with a purpose would be: the soldier, who endures hardship and even loss of life because he or she believes that the one or the cause that they fight for is worthy of their sacrifice and the friend, who bears the burden of someone else to keep them from collapsing under the weight of it. Also, the suffering draws us closer to Christ because we touch upon a shared experience of His. Not to say that we even begin to approach the degree of his suffering and sacrifice, but shared experience bonds powerfully.



So, I want to be defenseless against suffering because I want to live a life that is overflowing with love for all those who know me in this life. Besides, I started registering for this and kind of had to come up with something quickly, and this is it so there. :)


Smooches and sunshine,
Dennis