A Spiritual Exercise

Recall a discouraging or adverse situation that you were involved in recently, and then think about the good things that came out of your misfortune, or may yet. Try to think of at least three things. (Don’t give up too soon. If you can think of even one good result, more will probably follow.) Then thank God for the good.

For example, let’s say you were driving on a deserted road when your car broke down in the middle of nowhere, and when you tried to phone for help, you discovered that the battery in your cell phone was dead. Your thanks to God might go something like this:

“Thank You for putting me in that situation because it reminded me that no matter how helpless I feel, I’m never truly helpless because I always have You. Thank You that even when I was stranded out there with no help in sight and no phone to summon help, I was still able to contact You through prayer, and You came through for me. You sent a friendly stranger to help me, and even though it took awhile for him to get there, I made a new friend that I wouldn’t have otherwise, and he got Your blessing for stopping to help, which he would have missed if the opportunity hadn’t been there. Thank You for being, like the Bible says, ‘a very present help in trouble.’”¹

Practice this exercise each evening for the next week, and it will improve the way you react to troubles when they happen. Casting past troubles in a positive light will prepare you to approach future ones positively, and that is often half the battle won.

‘Tis easy enough to be pleasant,

When life flows along like a song,

But the man worthwhile

Is the one who will smile

When everything goes dead wrong.

—Ella Wheeler Wilcox