Finding Purpose in Suffering

In Hebrew, the word for "Illness" is Makhlah. When you rearrange the Hebrew letters from this root word what results is a telling list of new words:
Kholeh - one who is ill
Khalom - dream
Lekhem - bread
Khalee - sweeten
Makheel - beginning
Khel - (apply) bulwark
Chaiyel - warrior
Melchamah - battle
Makhol - dance
Khemlah - compassion, pity
Mekheelah - forgiveness
Chalah - dough offering
Lakh - moist
Lakhem - connect

When one is ill (and here I mean when one is experiencing a time of physical, emotional and/or mental challenge), makhlah, often one has dreams about how to deal with that illness. The illness often becomes "bread" to sustain us, in that we find meaning and purpose in the obstacle that is facing us. This new information may bring "sweetness" to our lives, and often becomes the beginning for a new phase of our growth. Often in illness we need to be a warrior and face the battle by applying the bulwark of our strength (even when that comes from others prayers and compassion). We dance the dance of this new phase of our lives and often that means forgiving ourselves, or others and making peace with things. We may use our new knowledge as an offering to HaShem, being thankful for the challenges we are able to meet, and for the abundance ever-present in our lives. Illness can connect us to others, and to deeper aspects of ourselves when we allow its "moisture" to enter us and cleanse us, as we soften the places where we are too hard and unyielding. Use these words as a basis to come up with your own meanings for the challenges you may now be facing.

There is much more to this in Rabbi Gershon Winkler's book on Jewish Shamanic Healing called Magic of the Ordinary.