Maybe Hardships are a Gift

I've spent a lot of time lately contemplating the many people I know that are dealing with very difficult situations. Whether its financial concerns, marital problems, illness, rejection, loss of a loved one, or another uncertainity of life, it feels like everyone is hurting or dealing with something extremely hard. 

I was praying for some specific friends this morning when it occurred to me, maybe hardships are actually a gift that allow us to discover who God really is and how He really feels about us. 

We would never know God as our Healer if we never needed healing.

We would never know Him as our Comforter, if we never needed to be comforted.

We would never know Him as our Sustainer, if we never felt like we felt like we were falling apart.

We would never know Him as our Provider, if we were never in need of anything.

We would never know Him as our Strength, if we were never burdened and weak.

We would never know Him as our Father, if we never needed Him to take care of us. 

We would never know Him as our Restorer, if nothing ever needed restoring. 

I've come to realize that God doesn't punish His children or cause bad things to happen to us. Instead, He protects from some things but allows other things to happen that will cause us to experience Him ways we never would have otherwise. 

The most important thing in this life is truly getting to know the One who created us. Life's difficulties often create the perfect scenario for us to realize how much we need God and finally submit to His work in our lives. 

It's hard to imagine hardships as a gift, but that shift in perspective may be exactly what we need to help get us through whatever tough circumstance we are currently facing. 

Tori Shaw