Every one of us has gone through a rough patch or two in our lives. Sometimes these rough patches are extremely difficult for us to maneuver our way through, and can leave us thinking, "Will this ever get better?"
It will.
You see, in my short twenty years on this earth, I have learned a thing or two about getting through the hard times that life deals out to each and every one of us with as much grace and dignity as I can muster. Has it always been easy? No. Did I learn these lessons without failing miserably a few times? No. Do not let anyone try to make you believe that it is easy to learn how to keep your spirits up when life is kicking you.
What I have learned in life about getting through the hard times is that there is always a reason that something is happening to you, whether that be something good or bad. I have realized that many times when things did not work out in my favor or life brought a disappointment to me, it was usually necessary for something good to come afterward.
I rely greatly on my faith in times of hardship because I have always believed that God does not allow us to go through failures and hardships and pain for no reason. I have seen in my life, time and time again, that God has used every disappointment and every heartbreak to lead me to the place that I needed to be in my life.
I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder a few years back, although we believe I have been suffering with it for most of my life. This has been one of the greatest hardships in my life, thus far, because it is a constant battle. It has also been one of the hardest struggles to go through with a good attitude. This is because this disorder, like many other things in life, falls into the category of "not fair."
Even in the midst of this struggle, however, I can see God's hand. After a lot of soul searching and praying, I have realized that although my anxiety makes life more difficult on a daily basis, it has also allowed me to have a certain ability to empathize with other people and has given me a large capacity of love for others. My anxiety has molded me in positive ways; many of our struggles do. This is the aspect of suffering that many of us miss because we are too focused on our pain to be able to see the good things coming from the situation.
Embracing suffering in our lives is by far one of the hardest things for anyone to do. However, it is also one of the most important.
When you are struggling to embrace your struggles, remember this:
The low points in life never seem quite as low when we realize that we have a mighty God walking hand-in-hand with us through the fire.
