adversity is the bridge to perspective

​Yesterday, for Thanksgiving, I wrote: "gratitude is something we do in the face of struggles and not something that magically sweeps over us once we've overcome them."

I realize when we are in the face of struggles it's hard to hit the pause button and instantly start meditating on gratitude. So how do we face our struggles with gratitude?

I think it starts with trust.

It starts with realizing most of our struggles are rooted in us having no idea where the struggles are going. That scares us. It confuses us. We humans aren't big fans of surprise endings.

So, I think gratitude starts with being able to trust that the struggle that makes no sense today - one day will.

I love the bible story about Joseph. This is a several chapter story in Genesis - but the summary goes something like this:

Joseph is the youngest brother of many brothers. His older brothers are jealous of him because dad seems to like him more. So the brothers come up with a plot to kill him. Only they don't kill him - they sell him into slavery. In slavery he ends up serving a king - then thrown in prison - then back to serving a king.

The story of Joseph is full of adversity. It is full of "where on earth is this struggle going?"

Then one day there is a famine. And Joseph is in a position to provide food for the brothers that tried to kill him - ah, the perfect spot for revenge - and his brothers fully expected that's what was coming.

But Joseph tells them this: "Don’t you see, you planned evil against me but God used those same plans for my good, as you see all around you right now—life for many people. Easy now, you have nothing to fear; I’ll take care of you and your children.”

For Joseph, a couple of decades of struggle suddenly make sense to him. He had no idea in the midst of those struggles this moment was coming - but he did trust a moment was coming that would make sense of his struggle. So Joseph always kept plowing ahead in faith.

When you collect enough of those moments in life where adversity leads you to perspective, you can begin to be thankful for the adversity.

There was a day in my life when I hated running distances. It was too hard. Now I know that was a way of helping me later in life use running to know nothing is too hard. It's a way for me to help others know the same.

There was a day I abused alcohol - destructively so. All the while saying "this isn't a problem." Today it's a story I can tell to young people who frequently tell me "this isn't a problem."

There was a day that having kids was the last thing on earth I wanted. Kids would ruin a perfectly good life. Today, I know my kids did and continue to save my life.

When I look at my story - my story of adversity, I know I shouldn't be scared or confused by struggles. I should be thankful for them. Because although they are leading me somewhere I don't understand - and I know they are leading me to a surprise ending - I can trust they are leading me to a place where I'll understand the story of my life better than I ever have.

That might be a tough bridge to be traveling. But one nonetheless worthy of being thankful for.