When pain knocks at the door, is it a welcome guest?

Do you ever notice how most of us try to avoid painful stuff without necessarily taking a look at whats happening and what purpose it may serve. I have been having several discussions lately and the common theme is how to avoid pain. Isnt the focus of most of our spiritual and Ideological beliefs based on this idea. Christianity and other religions enforce the idea if you have the right belief you will avoid eternal pain. Communism tends to be based on the belief that we can avoid the pain of being taken advantage of if we all work together equally. Life has this Dual element to it(Pain and Pleasure). I think back to my youth, I was a small kid, I grew up in a violent enviroment. One aspect that came out of those painful times is that I became physically stronger. I developed the strength to not only protect myself but I now have the ability to protect my Loved ones. Had I not had those early experiences this would not be the case. Many of our artists creations are born of despair. Poetry, music, Art and countless other ideas came from pain, without it they would not have materialized. A blogging friend(Yael) has pointed out on several occasions that part of who we are includes our painful parts. Without them we would not be who we are. Now I am not saying to enjoy the pain(unless youre a masochist lol), but the point is dont try to avoid it, learn from it. So with that said, when my crusty old friend comes knocking I think I will invite him in and ask "What do you have to teach me today"