Sweet are the uses of adversity which, like the toad, ugly and venomous, wears yet a precious jewel in his head. – William Shakespeare
Awe, adversity. Do I hate it or welcome it? Not necessarily both but there is a lot of good in that word.
This has been an interesting couple of weeks. As you know I live in Oregon, the beautiful evergreen state. If you have watched the news lately, you have heard that our state got hit with many fires that have burned over 1 million acres of land with 500,000 people evacuated from their homes, this is 10% of Oregon’s population. This year has been one of the most destructive wildfire seasons on record and we are still not done.
As I write this blog, we are currently in a level one evacuation zone, near two of the five mega fires burning with zero containment. Already several towns have been decimated by these fires and thousands of people are now homeless after losing everything. How does a person cope with this?
My family and I became a part of the evacuation statistics when we got the ‘go now’ order. We left with what we wanted to save such as photos, clothes and our pets. I don’t know why but the silly part of me grabbed two grocery bags of DVD’s. Who does that? Gwen. Thankfully, Andy, my son was able to board our dog and cat and then my folks and I invaded the house of my friend where it was safe.
The unknown of whether we would have a house to come back to wore us down. My work was also affected by the fires, all my patients I normally see were evacuated and displaced somewhere else. Daily we watched the local news seeing horrific pictures of towns that had been mowed over by the fires leaving burnt buildings in its wake.
How can God let so much destruction happen to so many people? How does one get their life back after something like this?
Such adversity.
I looked up the word adversity, its meaning is – a state or instance of serious or continued difficulty or misfortune. No one likes difficulty or misfortune because there is pain and loss. Who wants to experience that?
But there is a good side to the word adversity. It’s called growth, strength, wisdom, and resiliency that gives us a feeling we have a little more mastery in life. Difficulty forces us to reach out for help, to create social networks and to realize that we cannot and should not overcome our struggles on our own.
When we navigated through some of the scariest times in our life, we build emotional muscle. The unknown that we feared so much has become known.
What kind of a person would I be if I never went through harsh conditions? Well, honestly, I really don’t want to think about what a spoiled brat I would be who couldn’t handle life in a positive and productive way. I certainly wouldn’t be where I’m at now.
“In times of adversity and change, we really discover who we are and what we’re made of.” – Howard Schultz
The strength inside of me just didn’t get handed to me on a platter, I went through many difficult times and each time I gained insight, and maturity. My friend sent me a wonderful message of encouragement saying it’s like a crown we wear and through each trial we go through we add a jewel to it. I swear my darn crown is getting too heavy!! I think God needs to retire this one and give me a new one if my life stays on this course with more battles in the future!
All fun set aside, my piece of wisdom that I can offer you, is don’t waste a chance to travel the road of adversity when it hits. Don’t try to avoid it or hide from it. There is one thing I know, eventually you will have to walk that path of hardship whether you want to or not. It’s because God wants you to grow. So, move forward and face it with faith and confidence that God will be there with you the whole way whether you feel Him or not. Sure, it’s scary but you will miss out on all the cool things that God wants to reward you with.
When I hit adversity, I give myself a little pep talk telling myself, “Let’s do this and get it over with so we can get to the good in this!” I remember when I was packing in a rush to evacuate the house, I kept telling myself, “Stay calm, God is with me.” Over and over I said it to remind myself amid the unknown that it was going to be okay because God was with me. Yes, it worked!
God is bigger than you and your problems. Just remember He has a big plan for you even though you can’t see it right now.
Joshua 1:9 – Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
It’s like a huge painting similar to the size of a football field, we can only see one square foot of it at times. The rest of it is out of our range of comprehension and understanding but as we move forward parts of the painting become visible and we are able to see what God has painted. This is one reason why life is so beautiful. The challenges keep us living, fighting to move ahead to the next obstacle that causes us to grow and become stronger. No wonder God keeps repeating to us, “Have faith and know that I will be there every step of the way.”
Psalm 119:71-72 It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes. The law of Your mouth is better to me than thousands of coins of gold and silver.
I joke that 2020 has been enough for me and as far as I’m concern it can go into oblivion and never come back to grace me with its presence. But through all the stuff that has happened I see growth in me. I see God in every turn and twist of this year.
The fires have destroyed a lot, but God is using people to remind others that yes this is crappy, and this is tough but we are here to help you, and God is here too.
Already awesome heroic stories are surfacing. Communities are banding together and offering help to others where needed. Mass number of animals and livestock have been relocated by a ton of volunteers to safe places. People have offered housing or a place to park a RV to ride out these monster fires. Some folks literally left their homes behind with just the clothes on their back only to be overwhelmed with the generosity by others who have sent in clothes, food, and supplies.
Let’s not forget the many fire fighters, volunteers, law enforcement and your average joe who pitched in. It blows my mind to see all this love and compassion. Hate is overrated.
There are families who have lost a love one and that is something you can’t get back. May God surround these folks with love and peace as they traverse this path.
Maybe you’re wondering what this experience has taught me. First, it brings me to tears knowing I have such awesome support from friends and family who have my back just as I have theirs. Two, during the days of the unknown, I didn’t know if I would have a house to go back to but God kept reminding me that He is bigger than the mega fires and that what I lose I will gain more. Three, having an abundance of faith in God helped me stay focused on what is true, and no fire can take that away from me!
When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us.” – Helen Keller
So next time you find yourself standing in front of a huge mountain that feels impossible to climb I encourage you to embrace it. Think of it like going through a fiery furnace that takes out the impurities in you and when you emerge from the other side you have become this beautiful, strong and resilient person. Put your faith in God trusting Him that He is going to do something awesome in your life through the adversity you face. I mean, if God puts this much time and effort in you than He must love you a bunch.
I remember making a deal with God, as if God would do this. I said, “God if you’re going to put me through awful, nasty trials, then promise me that you will show yourself in a huge unimaginable way because I don’t want to do all that work for nothing.” Well, God didn’t renege on that deal. Each time I can see how God has been in the middle of each hardship that spills over to others and already I see Him in this latest one.
“Adversity introduces a man to himself.” – Albert Einstein
You know the phrase, NO PAIN, NO GAIN. It’s true! There is no way around it. To become a better person who learns to weather the storm, you must go through adversity. This is what gives a person grit, making life challenging and worth walking on this earth. Your hardest times will often lead to great moments in your life. So, keep going! Tough situations build strong people in the end.
- “And once the storm is over, you won’t remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won’t even be sure, whether the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same person who walked in, that’s what this storm’s all about.” – Haruki Murakami
Gwen
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