If God can't take it away from us, pray that He gives us the courage to face it.

Some challenges that we have or hear of seem unnecessary; and we struggle to see why they need to happen. They can seem pointless.

I have seen this in the last few weeks.

Sudden/tragic deaths of loved ones, illnesses of children, loving couples unable to conceive. Why? Why is this God’s plan?

When I was working through recovery I was told that it was important to find a reason in all of this suffering. Our lives were not meant to be easy that’s for sure! If God can’t take it away from us, then pray that He gives us the courage to face it. 

I felt that this was a good way to look at it- it gives me a great source of comfort. I naively once believed that praying was my golden ticket to a desirable result. I know I prayed a thousand prayers to turn me into a Saint when I was at my darkest time! And it wasn’t taken away from me as quickly as I thought it would that’s for sure!

But I know He gave me the courage to face it. I needed to go through it for reasons that became clear later. 
For other situations above it may not be so clear now. But perhaps not being able to conceive means having the freedom to share your time or skill. 

Or having an unwell child makes you and others around you appreciate the fragility of life; and the new knowledge you can share saves another’s life. Or experiencing grief means you are a support for others who experience grief. It may seem trivial but your purpose may be to help just one person. 

It makes sense why people who face insurmountable tragedies begin support groups to help others. 
My saviour once suffered greatly... she was actively suicidal, clinically depressed, institutionalised, agoraphobic and so on. Years of suffering lead to recovery, which lead to her writing books, starting associations, helping thousands of anxiety and depression sufferers to recover, and teaching them to help others. All of this a result of her darkness. When I asked her about this she said, “Well I’m fortunate for what I’ve done now, but I could’ve done without the lesson!”
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Honest and true. We can all do without such ‘lessons’. We can only try to see reason behind it, some purpose, and turn it into SOMETHING. Perhaps then we will see God’s plan🌺