3 Blessings That Arise From Painful Times

This year has probably been the single year in my life so far when I have most grown. It has not been beautiful, it has not been easy, and it hasn’t given me immense joy.

But without a doubt, it has brought me incredible growth. For the following reasons, I am quite grateful.

What are some of the blessings that come about through an adverse year or season of life?

1 – There is always an opportunity to learn something new that can add value to your life, and if not something new, we often cross paths with a powerful reminder that we needed at a very key juncture.

This year I have honestly had too many new lessons and reminders to list in one brief blog post. To suffice, I am listing two of the more impactful. Firstly, I have deeply learned that there is truly no time like the present.

For a future-thinker and an abstractually-minded person like me, this was a hard pill to swallow. Before long, I (thankfully) learned that if I really want to create the life I dream of, I need to be more tactical than ever with my day-to-day activities. It was a hard-and-fast lesson. I learned I couldn’t afford to spend even minor amounts of time within ultimately meaningless ends.

Secondly, I learned like never before that you only get one family – so love them now, and love them well.

You only get one family, so love them well! Share on X

As uncomfortable as it sounds, we are all getting closer to death every day, so there is no chance other than today to show gratitude, appreciation and warmth to those who at the end of the day are truly closest to us.

2 – You can draw legitimate encouragement from the fact that you are growing stronger every day by experiencing adversity. If life hasn’t been hard for you lately, it’s a sign that you might not be truly living after all. Pain is an indication that life is nearby.

It is easy to forget that pain is a blessing. After all, the human spirit is hard-wired to want to avoid pain and hardship at all costs. It’s uncomfortable – I completely agree. There’s nothing enticing or enthralling about the sound of being in pain. No one desires it, and the virtue of compassion pushes us to help others be free of pain.

However, as the old saying goes, “no pain, no gain.” This statement could not hold more true in many circumstances. It is certainly true in the gym, and there is no doubt whatsoever that it is true in life.

Unfortunately, most of the time you will only hear that statement applied in a serious way in the gym. The way to remain grounded, as well as hopeful, is by periodically reminding ourselves that the struggle we are currently facing is one day going to be in our rearview mirror, and we will be better for it.

Your struggle is worth it. Share on X

So stick with it, my friend. I have faith in you. I need you to see this through – for your own hope, and for the hope of others who are counting on you.

3 – It allows you to relish and cherish the truly fruitful times like never before. There is nothing like hardship to make reaching the mountaintop that much more rewarding. In other words, there is nothing like a scorchingly hot day to make the ice cold glass of water that much more tantalizing.

As Andrew Schwab once put it, “One cannot fathom the plateau without first the pit.” How can we know we can truly appreciate the good times without the bad times preceding them? All great achievers were once in dire straits that tempted them to quit at every turn.

Use this as your hope that despite the storm brewing now, there will be an even more majestic sunrise soon to come. It takes a massive amount of persistence, but there is no light at the end of the tunnel without the heart to first traverse the tunnel. You have the heart to make it – I know you do. Wake up tomorrow and remind yourself that you will make it through this.