When we think of things to be thankful for, the hard times are often not the first thing that comes to mind. In fact, they’re often the last thing we want to be thankful for.
The death of a loved one, divorce, business troubles…
All of these things are hard. They challenge us. They stretch us. They make us want to quit.
But what if, instead of being frustrated, discouraged, or defeated, we look at these hard things as something to be thankful for?
Photo by Alessio Soggetti on Unsplash
4 Reasons To Be Thankful For The Hard Times
Missionary Kevin Prevost recently shared a message at our church, The Gateway Church (no, not THAT Gateway Church. He asked a poignant question. One that gave many people pause. He asked:
Are you thankful in the hard times?
And just like that, my mind began to race. I went through a laundry list of hard times:
- The passing of my dad
- Difficulties in the office
- Family issues
- Budget woes
- And more
I began to think: I should be thankful for these? Why? Why should I be thankful for the hard times?
He shared his reasonings with the church. Today, I want to share with you four reasons you should be thankful for the hard times.
. Hard times make you more resilient:
Resiliency is the ability to bounce back from challenging situations. Hard times can be considered challenging.
When we apply this to leadership, we know that leaders face challenges day in and day out. From those budget woes to the frustrating employee to the next disaster, leaders are consistently being resilient.
Don’t let the hard times make you hard. Instead, let them make you bouncy… bouncy enough to rebound from the challenges you face.
. Hard times show you what is not working:
Hard times often come when things aren’t working. A policy may no longer be effective, the leadership technique you’ve practiced for 10 years no longer gets the results you desire, or maybe the way you converse with others has become ineffective.
As you notice the effectiveness of these techniques and skills wane, it’s a warning sign that things need to change. The old ways no longer work. You’ve got to figure out something new.
Which leads us to…
. Hard times make you seek out new solutions:
That’s right… The hard times lead us to seek out new solutions. Sometimes, those solutions are out-of-the-box solutions. Other times, those solutions are so far in the box we have never seen them before.
But, because of the uncomfortability of the hard times, we’re forced to look for new solutions. We must put on our thinking caps, look at the issues before us, and find out what will work.
Seek out new solutions. They’re there for your taking. The quicker you seek out the new solution, the sooner the hard times will end.
Hard times make you appreciate the good times:
And, maybe the best reason of all to be thankful for the hard times is that the hard times make us appreciate the good times all the more. Think about it…
What happens after you have a tough day at work and the next day is a cake walk? You appreciate the easy day. Or when you argue with your spouse and then you make up with them? The relationship often seems better.
The hard times can be a great reminder of how good we have it at times.
