GOOD NEWS ABOUT HARD TIMES

I watched "The Wilderness Years" video
about Winston Churchill's years as a "back bencher." For
ten years he suffered defeat after defeat. He was
humiliated at the end of World War I, and spent the years
that should have been the height of his career as a lonely
outcast. He was defeated on "the India question." He was on
the wrong side when Edward abdicated the thrown. He was
ridiculed for his views on Germany and the threat of war.
He was broke and, at one point, nearly lost his home.

The strain tore at his family, and he struggled with the
"black dog" of depression. The men in his family had a
history of dying young and he feared that he, too, would
die a failure and an outcast. He was 65 years old when he
became Prime Minister.

I am convinced that much of the vigor, genius, stubbornness
and resilience that made him such a magnificent leader came
from those lonely years in the "wilderness."

Too often, we forget the value of the "wilderness."

We forget that Abraham Lincoln suffered defeat after
defeat. He struggled with depression, poverty and ridicule.
Ultimately, these experiences gave him the strength, and
the vision, to become America's greatest President.

Oprah Winfrey grew up in poverty. She was abused as a
child. Personally, I am convinced that much of her appeal,
and her power, come from her ability to relate to ordinary
people, particularly people who have suffered as she did.

Now obviously, suffering and rejection are not good things.
We all want to avoid pain and no one wants to be an
outsider.

What is interesting, however, is how we respond when hard
times come our way.

Some people crumble. They become bitter and see the world
as unfair. They view life as hard. They begin to think that
they are "wrong" or flawed or unfit. At some level, they
give up, or give in.

Others, however, hang tough. Like Churchill, they find
reserves they never knew they had. They examine their
beliefs and their strategies, adjusting where they can and
must, and holding firm to the unchanging principles that
guide their lives.

I would never wish adversity on anyone, and yet, without
it, some of us will never know who we truly are. I love the
quote from Nancy Reagan that "a woman is like a tea bag.
You never know how strong she is until you put her in hot
water." I trust that applies to men as well.

Many of my readers have known, or are currently enduring,
tough times and I hesitate to offer any easy advice. Tough
times are tough! They are not fun and they are not easy,
and cheap or flippant advice is merely insulting. But tough
times also bring out the best in us.

Tough times force us to examine ourselves. They burn out
our weaknesses and flaws, and if viewed correctly, tough
times prepare us for the future. Tough times may make us
stronger. Tough times can force us to grow or change in
ways that good times allow us to ignore or cover up. Tough
times force us to discover what we are made of.

When adversity comes, and it comes in some measure to each
of us, do not "accept" it! Rail and fight against it!
Resist with all that is in you! But do not resent it. Learn
from it and use it to your advantage.