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Tuesday, September 8, 2009

How do you deal with hard times in your life?

I know that no one ever said that life is easy, but for some people life seems really hard, and there seem to be no easy answers. I like to read blogs, and some that I follow tell a sad story, the mother who is blessed to stay home and raise/homeschool her children, but has no insurance, and her husband is working three jobs, they are barely scraping by, life is a struggle, they have a lot of medical debt, they are having a hard time seeing God in all of this........the retired couple who want to homestead, but are struggling with health issues, financial issues, and don't know where God is calling them to be. Don't get me wrong, these two bloggers do not complain, generally they are upbeat, but at times their struggles get them down. Life is hard, sometimes it is difficult to find the positives when we are suffering, yet often times it is suffering that brings us closer to God. In the book Anne of Green Gables, Anne says that she is in the depths of despair, and Marilla responds, "to despair is to turn one's back on God", how true this statement is. No matter what is going on in your life it is important to thank God for your blessings, and to know that He is with us at all times.
If I am facing a difficult situation I pray for the grace to see me through it. We should ask others to pray for us when we have difficulties, and we should pray for others when we know they are struggling, and we should let people know that we are praying for them. Often when we are struggling, others are struggling more, a good way to take focus off of your own problems is to help others, donate a little something to the local food bank, or soup kitchen, volunteer, set time aside each day to pray for others, put a smile on your face and praise God, take a moment to lift someone else up with a friendly comment and a smile.
Don't dwell on your issues, this is self-defeating and does not resolve anything. This is not to say that we should ignore problems, we should think about what is going on, pray about it, make a plan of action, and move forward. This saying is an oldie, but a goodie, "Let Go, and Let God".

1 comment:

Marika said...

Isn't that true! What's that saying... life is 10% about what happens to us, and 90% about how we choose to respond.

Attitude is a choice, our thoughts are also a choice. We choose what we think about, that in turn creates particular emotions that we feel.

Life is a struggle for every person. It is supposed to be that way. We are revealed through our struggles. We get the opportunity to grow and to learn - and get closer to the destiny that God has in store for us.

I love the quote by Helen Keller - "Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing at all."

Relish the Struggle!