Life Lessons from The Help
Pain Happens in a Broken World
by Poppy Smith
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 Have you read or seen the movie, THE HELP? If you have, you know it
is a story about racism and the treatment of black maids who worked for
white people in the South. People’s reactions range from outrage at the
humiliation blacks have often received, to charges that it was biased
and untrue.
I came out of the movie grieving. I not only felt wretched at the pain
racism causes, but also at the hurt and suffering that comes when
people mistreat others. Pain Happens in a Broken World. Being cruel
to others, whether by actions or words, happens in every culture for
many reasons: because individuals think they are superior for some
reason due to their skin color, gender, position in society, wealth, or
education. Whatever the reasons, they all flow from a sinful heart.
Have you been hurt?
• Have you known what it is like to be looked down on, dismissed as unimportant, or made to
feel unwanted? Have you experienced cruelty of some kind? How did it make you feel?
• Have you wrestled with anger, wanting to get revenge, or feeling crushed and of no worth? In The Help, one of the poorly treated maids gets her revenge in a startling way. But revenge is
God’s prerogative, and not ours to take (Romans 12:19).
• Your pain might have come from someone you work with, live next to, or go to school with. Its
source could be a relative or close family. Even fellow believers hurt others when operating in
the flesh and not the Spirit. But no matter where your pain originated, it is something God
wants to heal.
• God Cares About You. Why should He care? Why does He call you to forgive those who have
harmed you? Because He loves you and wants the appalling power of bitterness, hatred, and
inner rage to stop poisoning your heart and your life.
• God’s Path to Healing. How can you and I, followers of the Lord Jesus, indwelt by His Mighty
and All-powerful Spirit, find freedom from pain? Only by forgiving the one, or many, who
caused our pain.
Three necessary principles for dealing with pain:
• Reject blame and bitterness. It doesn’t move you forward. It chains you to the past.
• Pray for willingness to forgive. It is a process that often requires time to work through.
• Forgive the offender. Be willing to release that person from your desire for revenge, or even
for an apology. Realize they most likely have moved on and forgotten the incident.
Remembering is only hurting you. Let it go.
Remember something else: the Lord is our Healer. He wants you to experience joy, no matter how
much pain you have experienced. He wants you to THRIVE in every aspect of your life. And He has
provided a way for this to happen! Will you walk in it?
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