This won't hurt a bit...

I just had three fillings done this morning. My mouth is so numb I'm drooling on the keyboard as I write. If you're like me, you go to the dentist about once every 5 years because you know when you do the news is going to be bad- a massive cleaning and a few cavities that need work. (Total count- 15 teeth with fillings! But that's out of all 32.)
Every time the dentist gets started, no matter what dentist, they always start with that same reassurance, "This isn't going to hurt a bit." And the thing is- they're right! It never does. They pump my mouth so full of Novocaine that I'm a slobbering fool for half the day.
So why do I always put off going to the dentist? For some reason I do not like to be told that, 1) I'm not doing a good enough job of flossing (i.e. apparently not flossing is not considered a good job) and 2) I'm about to pay the consequence. So rather than face the reality of my own shortcomings and the decay that is occurring within me, I willingly choose to ignore what I know and put off what is inevitable.
If my knowledge of scripture is right, I can't recall anywhere in the Bible where it is written, "This isn't going t hurt a bit." Actually, I can think of many verses that say quite the opposite- this is going to hurt, this life isn't always going to be easy, brace yourself for trials. There's decay happening in your body right now- it's a sickness in your soul. Call it a cavity, call it sin, call it "transgressions," call it whatever. The point is, you can ignore it for while, and even put off doing something about it, but still- it is there, it is growing, and it isn't going away by itself.
So we make our appointment, go to church, lay back in our seat, and pray for the Novocaine of our choice to kick in before it gets too painful. But that's not how God seems to work. God says, "I need you to feel this. I need you to be a part of dealing with this." The great news is that God takes the root canal in Jesus Christ (OK, my metaphor is getting out of hand, just remember, I'm pumped full of painkiller as I write). God goes to root of the cavities in the soul of humanity and essentially takes care of the problem in Jesus' death and resurrection. Then he starts applying that to me.
So today I pray that I might not seek to numb the pain of dealing with the cavities in my life. I pray that God gives me the strength to face the decay and the cleaning that must take place. I pray that at the end of the day I can sit up and say that all things considered, it really wasn't so bad. After all, Jesus didn't say this isn't going to hurt a bit, but he did say I am with you always.