After a major surgery or accident, part of the healing process often involves physical therapy. Physical therapy can be frustratingly slow going and unbelievably painful. We may sometimes be led to believe that such pain is somehow a punishment, especially if it was our own fault that we landed in this predicament. But whether we deserve it or not, the pain will be there all the same. It is simply a consequence of the damage we sustained and we do ourselves no favors when we try to put off or engage half-heartedly in the process. In order to regain our full range of motion and rebuild our strength, we will have to go through the pain and the tedium of our physical therapy. We can think of the repentance process as being the spiritual equivalent of physical therapy. Repentance can be painful and it can require a great deal of patience and humility as we struggle to restore our spiritual stamina and flexibility. But we should never for a second believe that the pain we feel is mere retribution or comeuppance for our mistakes and failures. God doesn't inflict pain on us just out of spite. Sinning can mangle our souls just as effectively as an accident can mangle our bodies. Going through the repetitions even when it hurts and it feels like we are making no progress is necessary if we want to be fully healed and strong enough to face the challenges in front of us. We need to abandon the notion that repentance is some form of punishment. Repentance is designed to help heal and restore our spirits, and any pain that comes with the repentance is only the pain that naturally comes from coaxing our spiritual muscles back into shape after they have suffered some serious damage. I hope we will all embrace the challenge that comes from the spiritual therapy that is repentance and that we will not shy away from the pain or become discouraged by the glacial pace of our progress but rather that we will keep our eyes fixed on bringing our spirits back to full health.
