Enlightened Adversity

Our mindset is often one of avoiding adversity at all costs. We desire to avoid illness, discomfort, distress and emotional anguish. We are willing to try almost anything available in order to be free of these unpleasant experiences. A life free of adversity is a blessing of great value. And adversity in our lives is of magnificent value. Adversity forces change and ultimately leads to personal growth, enlightened understanding and both physical and spiritual development. Express gratitude for the adversity in your life. In contrast to the negative life experience that we often view adversity as, it is, in fact, a doorway to enlightenment. When we can allow rather than resist, we open ourselves to an impetus to enlightenment that nothing else can provide. Moving forward with grace and ease is accepting adversity with gratitude and peace.

"A diamond cannot be polished without friction, nor humanity perfected without trials." ~ Chinese Proverb

It is the beating and bashing about by the wind and weather that gives a tree the need to toughen up and grow strong with a firm foundation and it is the battery of life's difficulties that gives us a reason to develop strength of character and faith. I am who I am today not because of the pleasantness and beauty of life; but in spite of it. We would all desire a life of peaceful bliss, and we can be assured that life will not, itself, be peaceful or blissful in every moment in this world.

We are assured that we can have peace, and that we will have tribulation.

John 16:33: "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

We can have peace in tribulation or adversity.

We are supposed to have adversity, tribulation. It's part of our agreement as human beings on this planet. We did not choose to have an existence without pain, fear or challenge. That is not how the administration of rules of life in the third dimension works. This planet was created for strife, for adversity. It is the intention of our blessed Mother Earth to challenge us as she challenges nature herself. It is our nature, and it is the law of nature. This life on this planet is to perfect us, to give us the opportunity to create ourselves, to mold ourselves into stronger, wiser, more enlightened beings. It is the intention of this life to move us beyond the foolishness that was into the awakening and perfection, polishing of the light body. We are not our physical bodies.
Our physical bodies are the vehicle that is required to carry us through this three dimensional world and universe. We are more than the makeup of our genes and cells. Adversity is what drives us to this realization.

Adversity comes when we least desire it, when we are warm and comfortable and complacent. Adversity shows up on our doorstep when we just want to be left alone to do nothing. Why? Because we did not come here to do nothing. We came here with a purpose. It is an honor and a blessing to have the opportunity to live a physical life in this world at this time of challenge and change, awakening and enlightenment, transformation and ascension. The fact that we are here means that we are supposed to be here. And this is a planet of choice above all other rules of life. We can choose to sit quietly in the corner and waste this lifetime because free will is governing law of this universe. And adversity pops in to remind us that we did not come here for a lazy problem-free existence. Problems are challenges to be solved, resolved and learned from. Life problems, like math problems, always have a solution if you just understand the formula.

So what is the formula to solve a problem of adversity?

Acceptance plus Knowledge times Trust to the power of Prayer = Growth with added Strength

Acceptance –

To accept is not to give up; it is to embrace all possibilities. We suffer in adversity when we resist. We resist change. We resist growth. We resist releasing old non-serving patterns of thought and processes that keep us cycling through misery. We resist accepting that life without adversity is not possible on this planet. In our resistance of this truth, we choose to believe that if we are good enough, smart enough, powerful enough, rich enough, righteous enough or something else enough that we can live our lives free of adversity. All around us we can observe the falsehood of this belief; yet we choose to cling to it in order to resist the adversity that is at our feet. If you look away from the ant bed you are standing in, and keep standing in the ant bed, you will certainly suffer. Resisting the belief that ants can be a part of your life does not cause the ants to disappear. It magnifies your suffering. If you accept that you have stepped into an ant bed because you were looking away or it was too dark to see or you got distracted or you were just being foolish or the ant bed wasn't there yesterday - If you can accept that your feet are now standing squarely in the middle of an ant bed, recognize it for what it is, step away and shake them off, you can minimize your suffering through this adversity. When you recognize adversity in your life, understand that the first choice you have is to accept or to resist. Resistance will surely prolong your suffering. Acceptance allows you to see all possibilities in life, even the possibility of adversity, and to move forward.

Knowledge –

Your knowledge is your storehouse of experience, learning and understanding. Every time we face adversity we weigh it against our past experiences. We compare it to what we have learned and come to understand about life. As we draw on our knowledge, we develop hypotheses about how best to maneuver through this adversity so that we can get the best benefit of the experience in the shortest amount of time and come out on the other side a better person.

Trust –

As we navigate through the adversity in our lives, trust is our greatest ally. We move with grace and ease when we have the confidence of trusting our inner selves and Divine guidance.

Prayer –

Humility rather than pride is always the path to spiritual growth. As we humble ourselves in prayer and acceptance of Divine will, we align ourselves with the outcome of our desire and make a place for it in our lives. When we feel the inner peace of humble, reverent prayer, we move into the space of the sacredness of life where joy, peace and love abide, and our adversity can be seen with clearer eyes. An enlightened understanding promotes a new and greater perspective from which our lives look very different. From a greater perspective we can visualize opportunities for change, growth and resolution that are simply overlooked when we are too close to the problem. It's like a series of dots scattered on a wall that are simply dots littering the paint close up; but seen from a distant perspective the dots can form an amazing work of art. A change of perspective can change everything.

Growth –

Life is growth. We can take a lesson from the plant kingdom. To cease to grow is to begin to wither and die. When our lives become stale and stagnant, and we resist change and movement, our bodies begin to wither and atrophy. Our physical, emotional, spiritual and light bodies wither without growth. Adversity forces into growth and strength. So, when adversity comes to call, shout, "Hallelujah!" It's time to grow!

Strength –

Strength is the bonus of adversity. It is the product, the outcome, of moving through adversity. Anything that needs strengthening can be strengthened through adversity. If your brain is not as sharp as it once was, what do you do? You exercise it to whip it back into shape with brain teasers, puzzles and quizzes. If your muscles are losing their strength you exercise them with challenging work because the product of work is strength. And if your character, your wisdom, your spirituality or your ethics are failing, adversity can give them a workout and bless them with strength through challenge.

When adversity comes to call, be wise. Look it square in the face and ask yourself, what has this come to teach or strengthen? The answer will be right in front of you.

Remember the words of the Beatitudes in Matthew 5: 10-12:

"Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you."

What a blessing is promised to those who accept it!