Life is filled with emotional battles. We have our ups and downs, our hills and valleys of life along the way.
Sometimes it seems like we have more downs than ups. More failures than successes.
But life isn’t measured by the number of times that things aren’t going well. It is measured in how we respond to all the times we ride along this roller coaster called “life”.
Valleys..
These are the times when it seems like there is no right answer. Maybe there are no answers at all.
We encounter nothing but hardships, the seeming limit to our endurance. God sometimes takes great pleasure at stretching our rubber bands. Sometimes to the breaking point.
Then we find ourselves where nothing we do is ever right. We say something innocent and it gets blown up out of proportion. Our tasks at work end in failures. Friendships are teetering. And circumstances are less than acceptable.
Times are tough. And sometimes we don’t know if we even want to go on one more moment.
But we must endure. To give up is to admit failure. And none of us are failures. Not even if the world thinks we are.
Hills…
Then there are those days when everything seems to be going right. They never feel like they are as many as the valleys. But that is because the down times strike more powerful emotions than the up times.
Joy should be with us always. Even when we don’t have the where-with-all to stand. But the emotions of fear, anger, etc. take precedence in the human being.
On those days when we feel good, we relish the feeling of almost euphoria. We are top of the world!
Life’s journey…
That is the journey of life. It is filled with valleys and hills.
We should not be discouraged when things aren’t going our way. It is part of life.
Instead, we need to remember that past those difficult times, there will be another peak to discover. Our lives may seem like they are filled with disappointments, but the reality is that there are just as many good times as bad.
We just need to make a better effort to seek them, remember them, find them in the midst of those trials.
They are always there, hidden in plain sight.