In the last few weeks I’ve watched a number of my friends deal with serious life complications related to their children, for one a marriage and for another – just life.  Why us?  Why this?

Life occasionally presents all of us with problems.  And sometimes these problems seem so serious that they take our breath away.  We don’t want problems. We want our lives to flow with ease and grace.

As I look back over my life so far, I see the problems and challenges that really were opportunities for greatness and grace. What seemed so bad and so awful at the time ended up being a life lesson.  Yet, it is difficult when we are going through times of challenge to feel thankful for the experience.

But, deep down we know that finding the grace in the crisis … when we feel crushed by the situation, is really the only way to survive and grow.

The key? To feel gratitude for what we do have.  We have to see those other gifts in our lives, even in the midst of the crisis.  Then, little by little we will start to notice how gratitude for the actual crisis becomes a bit more natural.  We start to see the every day grace that enters our life from that which feels so horrible.  We see that the change (however painful) will bring life lessons and growth.  Eventually, gratitude for it all becomes part of your identity.

I guess if I really break it down, all we need to do is pay attention to what comes to us every day.  The small steps forward.  The moments of grace even when shedding tears.  Finding grace is a commitment, for sure, but is there any other way?

So during these times of global crisis and those painful changes in our own back yard, make it a practice to see the opportunity in the crisis, the blessing in the disappointment and the joy of the new changes in life.

Grace and gratitude becomes you.

Have a wonderful weekend!