Finding Growth In The Struggle & Turning Negatives Into
Positives
Sometimes in life we go through very tough and difficult times
whether it be a family tragedy, a health issue, conflict with a co-worker or a
friend, financial trouble, struggles finding a job etc. Often these times of
trial can discourage, distress or even depress us. However, the difficulties we
endure in life often make us stronger in the long run and help us find the
courage we didn’t know we had, the courage to go on despite the difficulties,
the courage to overcome these trials we are faced with.
The trick is finding the blessing in the difficulty. Sometimes
that isn’t easy and sometimes we may not realize the blessing right away,
sometimes not even until the problem has been resolved and we look back on
everything we faced regarding it, learning from the experience. So how do we
find the blessing? First, we can be grateful for the good things we still have
in life while facing these trials and also remembering that things could be a
lot worse and that others are facing bigger problems in the world than we are.
Not only does that keep us humble and grateful but it often can even help us
reflect to where we can possibly even find a solution to the current problem we
face.
Of course, it is also perfectly ok to ask for help or advice
from a trusted individual such as a friend or family member. If they are able
to assist you with the problem, remember to thank them. If they aren’t able to
assist you, do not hold a grudge against them for not helping especially if the
matter regards financial trouble.
Translation: If you ask to borrow money from them and they tell
you they can’t give you any, please try to be understanding. Perhaps they are
not in a place where they can help financially for they may possibly be
struggling with finances themselves and just not disclosing that information to
anyone. Not everyone is comfortable with sharing their problems to the world
after all and some people try to tackle on problems without other’s help or
knowledge of the matter so if someone tells you the only way they can help is
through prayer, please be appreciative of that because they are choosing to
pray for you because they care for you and please don’t try to guilt trip them
for not being able to do more than that for that may be the only way they can
help right now.
Sometimes we go through things that really can’t be helped by
anyone else but ourselves. In matters like these, we sometimes realize that if
a situation cannot be controlled, there’s no point in exhausting ourselves and
stressing ourselves out by fighting the situation. Sometimes it’s just
something we have to embrace and by doing so, we can often turn a negative
situation into a positive one by finding the way we ourselves can grow through
our struggle.
A situation out of my control is something that has affected me
in the past and continues to do so today. Through a lot of self-reflection, I
came to realize that perhaps God had me go through what I went through in order
to grow as a person in a variety of different ways through my life and career.
I came to realize that perhaps these changes in my life are leading me to
something bigger and greater in my life that I need to embrace rather than try
to fight off and that it’s only a matter of time before I see the benefits from
it. I have had to acknowledge that what I went though may be helping me to
blossom into the person that God wants me to be and to develop my life and
career into how he wants it to be. I had to find the positive in the negative
by embracing it as an opportunity for growth and transformation in many areas
of my life.
Therefore, I encourage you to do your best to find the silver
lining in negative experiences and moments of hardship. Do what you have to in
order to find a way to grow and become stronger from what you are enduring,
even if it takes a while to do so. Keep a heart full of hope, a soul full of
gratitude and a spirit of perseverance. I wish you all the best!
