What’s Wrong With Me?

Several of the participants in our recovery groups have recently expressed their frustration with the ups and downs of recovery. The common theme has been something like “Why does this have to be so hard. Why doesn’t God just take it away when I pray?”, “I don’t get the point of all this struggle. What’s wrong with me that it’s taking me so long to ‘get it’?”

What they don’t understand is . . . that maybe, just maybe, there is NOTHING wrong with them. Maybe the struggle is part of God’s plan.

The truth is, we seldom learn from the easy, breezy experiences in our lives. It is more often the difficult challenges and “hard stuff” that change and refine us. We recently ran into a quote from Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, who is well-known for her work with dying people, that sums it up well:

“The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness and deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.”

Beautiful people make this world a better place for all of us. If you’re in a tough spot right now or if you’ve become exhausted and frustrated by the process, we encourage you to just hang on a little longer! Even though you see no  end in sight—take it from people that have been there—it won’t always be this difficult. And, in time, you’ll be better and stronger (and more beautiful) because you persevered through this battle!

“Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” James 1:4