If you were standing at the foot of a mountain, with a great desire to be at the top of the mountain, doing all you can to climb: struggling and seemingly overwhelmed by this tough challenge, and then all of a sudden, your foot slipped in the wrong direction, falling into a pit of several metres deep, what would you do? Would you still remember your ultimate goal which is to be at the top of that mountain?

Three kinds of decisions exist in this situation for three different people.

The first is the one who would naturally see his fall as the last straw that broke the camel’s back. This person would never see a way out. All he sees around him are the walls around the deep pit which he believes he cannot climb even if he were to get a ladder: there’s no ladder high enough to get him out. All he can see is impossibility. This type will never make any attempt to get out, he would give up immediately and die in the lonely hole.

The second is the one who when he’s found himself in the pit thinks to himself;

“I know this is the end of my dream to be at the top of that mountain, but I won’t die in this pit. I’ll fight to leave here and then see what life has for me out there.”

With that mindset, he fights. He would struggle night and day, not resting, looking for a way out. Though every move he makes to get out of the pit ends with disappointments, he keeps trying. He’s made up his mind never to die here.
Eventually, he finds a way to climb the walls. And finally he’s out of the pit. But he dares not look at that mountain again. For him, getting out of that pit is enough achievement.

The third, having fallen into the deep pit looks around himself and immediately starts looking for a solution. He knows where he belongs; the top of the mountain. Being at the top of the mountain never leaves his vision. He sees himself at the top of that mountain even while still at the bottom of the pit. He finds a way to create a path on the walls around the pit to make it easy for him to climb. He fails to give up no matter how tough it gets. He knows where he should be, and so he strives on.
Eventually he gets out of the pit. As he leaves the pit, he immediately move towards the mountain. As he looks at the mountain, he sees it differently now. He sees a better means to climb it. He’s now experienced. He now sees the easiest way to climb this mountain; a way he would never have seen if he’d not fallen into a deep pit.
He starts climbing the mountain and within the shortest possible time, he’s at the top of the mountain. Now he relaxes at the top of the mountain and sings songs of a glorious victory.

This third person, as he enjoys his dream come true, he realises that it was necessary he fell into the pit for him to know how to climb the mountain and remain there. He realises that if he’d not fallen into the pit, he could never have found the strength to climb this mountain to its top.

You see, sometimes in life, when undergoing a tough challenge, a tougher challenge comes your way. The tougher one is not to kill your hope but to build you up and open your eyes to possibilities.

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

Challenges don’t come to kill you, they come to recreate you into a better and tougher version of you. That challenge is for your ultimate good if you don’t give up.

Situations will come. It’s part of life. But no matter how difficult and challenging the situation is, never lose your focus. Keep your dream alive. Fight with the passion, and you’ll sing songs of victory in the end. Just keep the focus.

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