In every crisis is an opportunity

The Chinese have two characters
for the word 'crisis'. One means
danger; the other, opportunity.

The Chinese have two characters for the word "crisis". One means danger; the other, opportunity. How right they are! In every crisis there is a danger of being defeated or the opportunity for growth.

The question is: How can we turn crises and suffering into opportunities?

We need to realize that we have a choice. Our difficulties can make us bitter or better. They can become a stumbling block or a stepping stone. They can make us resentful or we can see in them an opportunity to be creative.

The choice, however, is ours.

In ancient times people used an instrument called a tribulum. It was used to beat grain in order to divide the chaff from the wheat. It's the word from which we get our word "tribulation." In the development of human character it's tribulation that divides "the chaff from the wheat."

In the Bible it says,

"We also rejoice in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope."
Romans 5:3-4

To turn our crises into opportunities, we need to ask the question,

"What might God be trying to say to me through my adverse circumstances?"

No matter what happens to us, God wants to use our suffering to strengthen us, to mature us, and to make us better persons.

If you are going through a time of sickness, sorrow, depression, financial setback, a broken relationship, or feel you have failed in some way, can you accept that God wants to use your suffering to help you grow and become closer to him? Can you ask him to help you see what you might be contributing to your situation, for the courage to do your part in resolving it, and through it help you to grow?

After a long winter, spring eventually comes and with it new leaves appear on the trees in all their refreshing beauty. In the summer they thrive. In the fall they die. But in dying their beauty is greater than in the spring. But the tree doesn't die. The falling leaves just make further growth possible. And that's the cycle of life-struggle, pain, beauty, growth.

Apparently, in his later years, Renoir, the famous French painter, suffered badly from arthritis. On one occasion his close friend, Matisse, questioned him,

"My friend, why do you keep on painting when you are in so much pain?"

To which Renoir thoughtfully replied, "The pain passes, but the beauty remains!"

For all who trust their life to God and ask him to use their struggles to help them grow, their pain, too, will pass, but their beauty will remain—forever.

"Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall."

Psalm 55:22

Be sure to invest your pain. Don't waste it. Invest it wisely in your own growth and in the growth of others.