Courage in the Face of Adversity

CourageWhat do you do in the face of adversity?  Do you run and hide, clench your fists, get upset, shut down or become discouraged?  I confess I’ve done all these when crushing circumstances, events and people rained down more than I could bear. For a while I couldn’t understand how my God, the one I submitted to again and again, could allow so many disappointments and pain all at once. I kept searching my heart and posing questions in prayer–Have I done something awful that I’m not even aware of to cause this?  Sometimes I would be shown what I needed to work through and that was the easy part because I could work on my own stuff. But the hard part was dealing with what others had done against me. I didn’t know how to handle the wisdom while the offenders showed no sign of repentance or responsibility. I had to ask in prayer so many times to please help me forgive because I knew I wouldn’t be able to on my own. I was assured that God was there to help but there were times the adversity was so intense that the only way to handle it all was to pray sorrowfully–sometimes for hours.

Eventually, I started to learn to be thankful even in the midst of the pain. I’d sing and give praises looking for anything small that I could be grateful for–A bird singing, a new bud on a rose bush or a summer rain storm.

There are many good biblical examples of a single person overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds, like Queen Esther, Daniel, and David, but when your story steps into that picture of odds stacked against you it’s not easy to walk through it all. We are told that God is with us though and that’s where the comfort comes from. His presence of peace is worth more than any human can offer. And, what or who can stand against the great I Am? That knowledge alone can make us courageous in the face of adversity.

“Sing to the Lord! For though I was poor and needy he rescued me from my oppressors.”  Jeremiah 20:13